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©The Sun
(Used by permission)
by Opalyn Mok, Jonathan Chen, Charles Ramendran and Llew-Ann Phang
 TAIPING (Aug 13, 2007): A "Super" express bus plunged
into a 6m-deep ravine on the North-South Expressway (NSE) in Bukit Gantang near
here before dawn today, killing 20 of its 29 occupants.
It was the country's worst road accident in history, and errily occurring at
4.28am on the first day of the month-long Hungry Ghost Festival when the souls
of the dead are freed to loiter.
Initial police investigations revealed the north-bound Malacca-Butterworth coach
was on Km229.1 of the NSE near the Bukit Gantang R&R when the driver lost
control of the steering wheel at the downhill stretch.
The bus was believed to have hit the left road steel railing for about 20m
before taking the plunge.
A police spokesman said the impact ripped the roof off the bus and flung several
of the passengers out of the 42-seater express.
Fire and rescue personnel pulled the injured out of the wreckage and applied
first aid before rushing them to the hospital about 20km away.
A crane had to be used to winch up the bus to enable rescue workers to extricate
the trapped bodies.
Nineteen passengers were killed on the spot and another died in the Taiping
Hospital hours later. Two of the eight warded are in critical condition.
The injured included a three-year-old infant, an Indonesian, a Nepali and two
Vietnamese.
Only Chhatrapati Ejam, 24, from Nepal was given out-patient treatment for minor
injuries.
Taiping OCPD ACP Raja Musa Raja Razak told reporters police were in the process
of identifying all the victims based on identification documents found scattered
at the scene.
Raja Musa said initial investigations showed there was no indication of a
collision with other vehicles and that there was no brake marks on the road.
"We will investigate the crash from all angles, including road engineering of
the particular stretch of road as well as the history of the bus," he said,
adding that the driver, Rohizan Abu Bakar, 38, had been issued 13 summonses and
two warrants of arrests for traffic offences.
Raja Musa also said Syarikat Kenderaan Bukit Gantang Bhd, the owner of the
ill-fated bus, was slapped with 19 summonses since 1991.
He called on all bus drivers to be extra cautious when doing overnight journeys
as they could experience fatique.
Transport Minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy visited the scene and lamented:
"It's the worst crash in the country's history."
"The cause of the crash, based on preliminary investigations, was human
negligence but it has not been confirmed.
"A detailed investigation has begun involving all the relevant departments and
agencies such as the police, Fire and Rescue Department and Road Transport
Department," he said.
The investigation would cover the possibility of the driver being tired, sleepy
or on drugs, and the condition of the bus and road, he added.
Chan said the bus belonged to Taiping-based Syarikat Kenderaan Bukit Gantang Sdn
Bhd. Puspakom inspected the 1987-registered bus in May.
He said the bus left Malacca at about 10.30pm and had travelled about 400km
before it crashed.
"The bus had a driver and an assistant driver. We will investigate whether it
had changed drivers because according to the rules, a change must be made after
over two hours of driving," he said, adding that he had informed Datuk Seri
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi about the accident.
"The prime minister wants immediate action be taken to enhance the level of road
safety in the country," he said.
Chan also said the Transport Ministry would soon implement several programmes
planned to enhance road safety, including the proposal to make it compulsory for
back-seat passengers in private vehicles to belt up.
The accident is the worst in the country involving a coach bus in terms of
fatalities. The other major fatal crashes occurred on:
* July 30, 2006: A chartered bus crashed near the Jawi toll plaza of the NSE,
killing 11 passengers who were on a pilgrimage to Bukit Mertajam for St Anne's
Feast;
* April 21, 2004: A tour bus' brake failed and crashed at the
Km11.2 Baling-Pengkalan Hulu road, Kedah, killing 15 passengers and wounding
many others;
* November 2003: 14 people died and 28 were injured when two
buses collided on the Kuala Lipis-Merapoh trunk road in Kuala Lipis, Pahang.
* July 16, 1996: One of five chartered buses ferrying
holiday-makers from a factory and descending Genting Highlands plunged into a
deep ravine, killing 17 passengers, injuring 15 others.
TAIPING (Aug 13, 2007): The death toll in the horrific express bus
accident near the Bukit Gantang R&R is 20.
Nineteen of the victims died on the spot and one - a 22-year-old man - died in
Taiping Hospital at about 1pm.
At press time, 17 have been identified, Three - two women and a man - have yet
to be identified.
The dead
1. Teoh Kee Seong, 37, from Sungai Petani
2. Cheng Chen Joo, 38, from Malacca (wife of Teoh), who was eight months
pregnant
3. Kamis Said, 62, from Malacca
4. Zaiton Chik, 57, from Malacca (Kamis' wife).
5. Zuliyani Buang, 25, from Tanjung Keling, Malacca
6. Fadli Ahmad, 21
7. T.Krishnan, 46, from Kuala Ketil
8. Rohizan Abu Bakar, 38, from Sungai Petani
9. Josli Arshad, 39
10. Pang Tee Min, 58
11. M. Basri.
12. Abu Bakar Ali (Indonesian).
13. Mohd Yazid Md Yusof, 22
14. Nazri Nordin, 35
15. Siti Sopiah Mohd Ismail, 23
16. Nur Sharulmiza Khairi, 27, from Sungai Petani
17. Shahril Afendi, 22 from Alor Star, Kedah
The survivors
1. Chhatrapati Ejam, 28, from Nepal
2. Nguyen Hyu Vina, 27, from Vietnam
3. Quang Ngol Hung, from Vietnam
3. Mohd Zahidi Che Ahmad, 22, from Langkawi
4. Siew Ken Ming, 27, from Malacca
5. Mohd Fauzi Hassan, 77, from Kasarogoh.
6. Shahril Afendi, 22, from Alor Star
7. Zurina Rashid, 23, from Kuala Kedah
8. P.Veeraman, 36, from Sepang
9. A three-year-old boy.
TAIPING (Aug 13, 2007): Sungai Petani resident Shuhairi Saad, 29, called
his wife Nur Sharulmiza Khairi, 27, to enquire about her arrival this morning.
Instead a stranger answered the phone to tell him that his wife is dead.
A grief-stricken Shuhairi rushed to the hospital mortuary here at 10am to check
the information, still hoping that what he heard was a prank.
"I did not know what happened as nobody called me. It was when I called her
handphone that the stranger told me about the accident and told me to go to
Taiping Hospital," he said.
"I last spoke to her at about 5pm yesterday (Sunday) and she told me that she
would reach Sungai Petani in the morning."
Another group of grieving relatives are Rohizan Abu Bakar's first and second
wives, Salina Shamsudin, 33, and Roslinda Mansor, 29. Salina and her five sons,
aged between 14 and four, are from Pantai Merdeka, Kedah, and Roslinda and her
three-year-old son are from Selama, Sungai Petani.
According to Salina, Rohizan, 38, called her at about 12.30am and told her he
was taking a bus back to Sungai Petani from Malacca to see her and their
children.
"He is a driver for Yakin Express and he is taking the bus back to see us and
told me that he will reach in the morning," she said.
After identifying Rohizan's body, both women sat next to each other. Although
they did not speak to each other, they were sobbing and being consoled by
relatives.
The parents of injured passengers Siew Ken Min, 20, reached Taiping at about
noon and were relieved that their son was in a stable condition.
Kuan Yew Leng, 53, said Ken Min, a foreman, was on the way to Butterworth on a
business trip with his supervisor.
"He called us between 5am and 6am and told us that there was an accident but he
is okay and is warded in Taiping Hospital for some slight injuries," she said.
She said her son suffered some lacerations on his body and injured his left eye,
so he had to stay on in the hospital for further observation.
"We hope to move him down to Malacca Hospital as soon as possible so that I can
look after him," she said.
PM: It's an attitude problem
KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 13, 2007): Malaysia has the best-maintained facilities but
more needs to be done about the attitude of the users, Prime Minister Datuk Seri
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said today.
Commenting on the express bus crash in Bukit Gantang, which claimed 20 lives, he
said in his keynote address at the National Asset and Facility Management (Nafam)
2007 Convention at Putra World Trade Centre: "It's a premier concern."
"I have asked (Works Minister Datuk Seri S.) Samy (Vellu) whether there was
anything wrong with the road conditions. Whether there were potholes or whether
the road was under repair that could have caused the accident.
"He said no, the road is well maintained ... in first-class condition, and yet
there is such an accident.
"It's a classic case of having the best facilities but human error has resulted
in a disaster. I have told (Transport Minister Datuk Seri Chan) Kong Choy that
we must insist that drivers of public services are as healthy as pilots to be
responsible for their passengers."
Abdullah, who conveyed his condolences to the families of the dead, also
emphasised the need for more than two drivers to ensure there are no cases of
sleepy or tired drivers.
"They must also have several years of driving experience before they are allowed
to drive buses," he said.
'Super' horror crash kills 20
TAIPING (Aug 13, 2007): The grim tales of an express
bus plunge:
* Among those killed: a man and his eight-month pregnant wife.
* Driver Rohizan Abu Bakar, 38, also died. He had 13
summonses and two warrants of arrest for traffic offences.
* Syarikat Kenderaan Bukit Gantang Bhd, the bus operator, had
been issued with 19 summonses since 1991.
* Police investigations reveal the north-bound
Malacca-Butterworth coach was going downhill near the Bukit Gantang R&R when the
driver lost control. It is believed to have hit the steel barrier for about 20m
before plunging into the 6m-deep ravine.
* Impact caused some passengers to be flung out of the
"Super" 42-seater bus. Others were pinned inside the vehicle which was reduced
to a mangled wreck, its roof ripped off.
* Only one man walked away with minor injuries. He's Nepali
Chhatrapati Ejam, 24.
* Transport Minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy calls it "the
worst crash in the country's history". He said human negligence suspected to be
the cause.
* Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board orders the operator,
which owns 38 buses, to stop operations immediately.
* A team will go to Alor Star to examine all the company's
buses from the technical and maintenance aspects.
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