The world waited with bated breath as filled with will and determination, Iraqi Zainab Al Eqabi, who lost her left leg at age seven when a previously unexploded bomb went off in her home during the first Gulf War, took her first dive into a marine world peopled by 65,000 species at the Ambassador Lagoon Aquarium in Atlantis, The Palm on Thursday.
“Life doesn’t stop when you have a disability’ was Zainab’s loud and clear message as she exerted extra strength and paddled with one leg.
The 26-year-old University of Sharjah graduate with an amputation above the knee told media that the bomb incident in Iraq made her realise how she is still blessed with other abilities in the face of what she has lost. In her annual goals for 2016, scuba diving occupied a prime spot.
“I was seven [years old], when a tool we were using to fix my bicycle exploded at our home. We had no idea it was an unexploded bomb left over from the war. It was in our house for seven years. As a result of the explosion, I suffered severe leg wounds and then a medical error in not properly treating the wound resulted in the amputation,” she said.
Al Eqabi believes she was lucky to survive and that there are a plenty of good things to experience in life every day, including trying out different adventures, such as scuba diving. “I’m still in the training stages right now, but the fact that you can move the way you like in the water gives you complete freedom. I have faced no real challenges with this experience, especially with the help of the instructor, who has plenty of experience training people with different kinds of disabilities.”
In a few of days’ time, Zainab is due to receive her licence as a scuba diver. “This will allow me to explore the sea world whenever I travel, and I’m very excited about that.” All the best Zainab, we salute your great spirit!