A multi-vehicle crash that sadly resulted in seven dead and 33 injured occurred last night on the North-South Highway (PLUS) near the Ayer Keroh services (R&R). Transport minister Anthony Loke has ordered an immediate probe into the accident.
“(translated) Initial investigations by the authorities found that the accident that resulted in the loss of seven lives was caused by a detached trailer lorry tyre, causing a tour bus to swerve and crash into three vehicles coming from the opposite direction,” Loke said on Facebook.
“I have instructed the Road Transport Department (JPJ) enforcement division director to immediately conduct a detailed investigation into the cause of the accident and take appropriate follow-up action against the trailer lorry and bus companies involved.
“JPJ will continue to implement strict and integrated enforcement actions against heavy commercial vehicles to ensure safety compliance at all times to guarantee the safety of road users,” he added while expressing his condolences to all the families who lost their loved ones.
Astro Awani reports that the seven lives lost comprised a family of five in a Toyota Estima, the tour bus driver and a tour bus passenger, while the New Straits Times reports that from January to October this year alone, 825 lorries were involved in fatal crashes, resulting in 5,364 deaths.
In the English-language daily’s report, federal traffic enforcement and investigation department (JSPT) director Datuk Seri Mohd Yusri Hassan Basri said that 177 different types of commercial vehicles have been seized for various offences including carrying unsecured and hazardous loads, not having warning triangles, as well as malfunctioning indicators and brakes.
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