A Genting bus crash in Malaysia has killed between 20 and 40 people, and is being called the country’s worst ever road calamity to date.
The Genting bus crash occurred in the Genting Highlands, near a popular resort an hour away from Kuala Lumpur where gambling and entertainment draw tourists and locals alike.
49 people were aboard the Genting bus when it plunged down a ravine, plummeting 70 meters after it possible crashed through a protective concrete barrier on the road.
It was about 3 PM local time when the horrifying bus crash occurred, killing 37 people according to local media sources. The site has a slightly different headcount and number of casualties, reporting :
“Thirty-seven people were killed in the country’s worst road tragedy , after a bus carrying 53 plunged into a 60m ravine near Genting Highlands around 2.45pm Wednesday… The dead included 24 males and 13 females. Sixteen people were injured in the incident.”
Among the dead was the bus driver, and Fire and Rescue Department Ops Director Datuk Soiman Jahid made an initial assessment on the Genting bus crash:
“… the descent was very steep and if the bus was not controlled well, it could have skidded and plunged into the ravine. This is the initial assessment of the rescue team.”
The Genting bus crash occurred in a very dangerous stretch of road, one on which two tourists died and dozens more were injured in a bus crash in 2012.
Before the Genting bus crash, Malaysia’s worst road accident involved another tourist bus, and 20 people were killed in that incident.