15 university students killed in bus crash on Perak expressway, as PM Anwar orders probe

In a statement on Monday morning, Anwar expressed his sorrow over the incident and extended condolences to relatives of the victims.

“Our heartfelt condolences go out to all the families of the victims. We pray that you find strength and resilience during this incredibly difficult time,” he said.

The prime minister also said that he has instructed the Higher Education Ministry to coordinate the necessary assistance to the families of the students involved. 

At a press conference on Monday afternoon, Higher Education Minister Zambry Abdul Kadir announced various forms of financial aid for the families of the victims involved in the accident. 

He also said 13 bodies had arrived at the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital in Ipoh for post-mortem procedures while the remaining two were at Gerik Hospital, Bernama reported.  

Perak Civil Defence Force earlier said that the injured victims suffered “broken arms, broken legs and minor injuries”. 

Of the 48 people involved in the crash, 42 were students, four were occupants of the MPV, and the remaining two were the bus driver and an attendant, Perak Fire and Rescue Department director Sayani Saidon told The Star. 

Meanwhile, the driver and passengers of the MPV – a couple aged 37 and 36 as well as their six-year-old daughter and three-year-old son – were also among those injured and were taken to Baling Hospital in Kedah, according to police chief Noor Hisam as reported by Bernama.

Noor Hisam said that the police could not release the official list of victims yet as the post-mortem process is still ongoing.

Sayani added that the bus and the MPV had been travelling in the same direction from Jeli to Gerik and the crash had caused the bus to overturn and the MPV to skid into a ditch. 

“Some victims managed to exit the vehicle on their own and some were thrown out, while others remained trapped inside the bus,” she said, as quoted by Bernama. 

“The operations commander cut open the rear section of the bus using hydraulic tools to create a working space,” she added. 

“The bus driver was also injured and we have not been able to record his statement,” Noor Hisam, the police chief, said at a press conference at the Perak Police Contingent Headquarters on Monday. 

He added that the case is being investigated under Section 41 (1) of the Road Transport Act 1987. 

“The road where the accident occured is winding and downhill … it was dark and had no lights except for the area near Tasik Banding, but it is still too early to draw any conclusions,” he was quoted as saying by local media.

According to the university’s deputy vice-chancellor for student affairs and alumni Norkhalid Salimin, most of the passengers on the bus were students returning to campus after the Aidiladha break, Free Malaysia Today reported.