IPOH: The 39-year-old driver of an express bus that crashed at KM265 of the North-South Expressway near Menora Tunnel early today, was believed to have been nodded off before the accident, police said.
In the 2am incident, the bus, from Kulim, Kedah to Kuala Lumpur skidded and plunged into a ditch. Thirteen passengers were injured.
District deputy police chief Superintendent Mohamad Nordin Abdullah said two out of the 13 passengers - a 40-year-old Indonesian man and a 33-year-old woman - sustained severe head and hip injuries in the crash. One passenger escaped unhurt.
"The driver who hails from Alor Star, Kedah sustained light injuries on his leg," he said today.
He added that police have arrested the driver and checks showed that he had 19 previous summonses for various traffic offences and three summonses for the bus he was driving.
"Initial investigation revealed that he had lost control of the vehicle before it skidded to the left side of the road and overturned in the ditch. The driver was suspected to have momentarily dozed off while driving.
"All injured victims, aged between 14 and 59, were taken to the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital (HRPB) for treatment," he said.
The case is being investigated under Section 44 (1) of the Road Transport Act 1987 for driving while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs.
