JOHOR BAHRU: Two Singaporean women and a Singapore permanent resident were killed on Monday (Aug 28) after the car they were in collided with a lorry in the Malaysian state of Johor.
The drivers of both vehicles survived.
A fire engine and five firefighters were deployed to the scene of the highway crash on Monday afternoon. A photo taken by Johor rescue authorities showed the wreckage of a car with its roof torn open.
In a statement issued to members of the media, Kota Tinggi police chief Hussin Zamora confirmed that a Singapore-registered Honda Freed MPV was heading from the district of Kluang to the town of Bandar Tenggara in Kota Tinggi when it collided with a lorry in oncoming traffic.
“The accident happened when the Singapore Honda Freed was overtaking a vehicle in front of it but could not avoid the lorry coming from the opposite direction and the two vehicles collided head-on,” he said.
Mr Hussin added that the two Singaporean women killed were aged 56 and 61. The third fatality, a Malaysian woman who was a Singapore permanent resident, was also 61.
The Johor Fire and Rescue Department identified the injured drivers as a 59-year-old Singaporean man and a 49-year-old Malaysian man.
Mr Hussin said they were taken to Kota Tinggi Hospital and Kluang Hospital respectively for medical treatment.
“After the victims’ families have identified the bodies of the loved ones who were killed, they will be released to their families as quickly as possible,” said Mr Hussin.
CNA has contacted Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs for more information.