In a statement on Monday morning, Anwar expressed his sorrow over the incident and extended condolences to relatives of the victims.
“Our heartfelt condolences go out to all the families of the victims. We pray that you find strength and resilience during this incredibly difficult time,” he said.
The prime minister also said that he has instructed the Higher Education Ministry to coordinate the necessary assistance to the families of the students involved.
Higher Education Minister Zambry Abdul Kadir said in a Facebook post that his ministry is ready to give the necessary assistance and further updates would be provided in due course.
“The 13 bodies were taken to Ipoh Hospital for post-mortem procedures. Two bodies are undergoing post-mortem at Gerik Hospital. The remaining injured victims are receiving treatment at Gerik Hospital,” he said on Monday morning.
According to Perak Civil Defence Force, the injured victims suffered “broken arms, broken legs and minor injuries”.
Of the 48 people involved in the crash, 42 were students, four were occupants of the MPV, and the remaining two were the bus driver and an attendant, Perak Fire and Rescue Department director Sayani Saidon told The Star.
Sayani added that the bus and the MPV had been travelling in the same direction from Jeli to Gerik and the crash had caused the bus to overturn and the MPV to skid into a ditch.
“Some victims managed to exit the vehicle on their own and some were thrown out, while others remained trapped inside the bus,” she said, as quoted by Bernama.
“The operations commander cut open the rear section of the bus using hydraulic tools to create a working space,” she added.
According to the university’s vice-chancellor for student affairs and alumni Norkhalid Salimin, most of the passengers on the bus were students returning to campus after the Aidiladha break, Free Malaysia Today reported.
