PETALING JAYA: There is no evidence that the crash which killed nine Federal Reserve Unit (FRU) members in Perak last month was caused by a malfunctioning steering unit in the tipper lorry that had rammed into the truck carrying the police personnel.
A preliminary report on the government’s investigation found that the tipper lorry was in good physical and technical condition, but the vehicle had been moving with a heavier load than what is legally permissible.
The investigation found that the tipper lorry had been carrying 40,960kg of gravel, almost double the legal limit of 24,000kg.
“Based on checks on the physical condition of the tipper lorry and the documents that were submitted, it was found that the vehicle was in good condition but it was travelling with a load that was 70% over the permissible amount, thus increasing the kinetic energy of the lorry.
“At the same time, the FRU truck did not have seat belts in the sitting area including for the driver,” said the report, which was released by the Special Committee on Road Safety under the Transport Ministry.
Most of the passengers of the FRU truck were sitting on benches in the cargo area which are also believed to have not complied with specification, it added.
The report said both these factors are believed to have contributed to the high number of deaths and injuries sustained by the 18 FRU personnel in the crash which occurred on May 13 in Teluk Intan.
There had been earlier claims, during the day of the crash, that the tipper lorry’s steering system had malfunctioned, causing it to swerve into the opposite lane and collide with the police lorry.
The investigation has yet to determine what caused the driver of the tipper lorry to swerve into the opposite lane causing his vehicle to crash into the police truck, the report said.
The investigation also found that the tipper lorry was carrying gravel when it was only permitted to carry coal.
Besides passengers, the cargo area of the FRU truck also had several items that had not been tied down which injured those seated in the bay when the vehicle was hit.
The government’s probe recommended that the safety features of police lorries be upgraded and improved to reduce the possibility of deaths and injuries.
The committee also recommended that the use of seat belts in all government vehicles be made mandatory.
The report also recommended increased enforcement of regulations especially towards heavy vehicles such as lorries when it comes to checking their loads, the licenses of the drivers and performing safety audits.
