Bus in Gerik crash clearly speeding, say police
Police said the road barrier penetrated the front left section of the bus, killing the students seated there. (Bernama pic)
PETALING JAYA : The bus in the Gerik crash that killed 15 university students was clearly speeding based on dashcam footage from a car, say police.
Perak police chief Noor Hisam Nordin said investigators have received the footage from the owner of the car, whose statement will be taken soon, Harian Metro reported.
'The recording clearly shows how the bus was speeding. What made matters worse was when a road barrier penetrated the front of the bus after it toppled over.
'That is why passengers seated on the left side of the bus were among those who lost their lives, because the barrier penetrated all the way to the passenger seats.
'We leave it to our investigating officers to go through the recording and take the owner's statement,' said Noor Hisam.
He added that the statements of survivors would also be taken, after several of the Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) students claimed the bus was speeding before the crash.
He said the site of the crash was a downhill stretch of a hilly road and that the accident occurred around midnight after some rain.
'Based on my observation, there were no clear road markings and the area is very dark. We're still probing whether the cause of the crash was due to negligence or technical issues.'
Noor Hisam also said most of the survivors were found in a drain next to the barrier, while the bodies of most of those killed were still in the bus after the crash.
A total of 15 UPSI students died from the crash on the Gerik-Jeli East West Highway, near Tasik Banding.
The bus was carrying 42 students, the bus driver and his assistant. A couple, along with their six-year-old daughter and three-year-old son, were travelling in a Perodua Alza the bus collided with.
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