4, including baby, killed, 2 injured in Perak car-lorry collision

SUNGAI SIPUT: Four people, including a baby, were killed when the Proton Saga they were travelling in collided with a trailer lorry at Km37 of Jalan Ipoh-Kuala Kangsar here, last night.

The dead have been identified as Mohamad Faiz Bakhri, 28 – a policeman with the rank of Lance Corporal; his wife Nik Idayu Nik Hassan, 30; their child Muhammad Faqih Irshad, 16 months; and Faiz’s sister in-law, Nik Ifieka Nik Hassan, 28.

All were killed on the spot in the 10.20pm crash.

Firemen attend to the crash site involving a trailer and a car. - NSTP/Balqis Jazimah Zahari

Faiz’s elder son, Muhammad Fariz Iskandar, 3-years-old, suffered severe injuries and was rushed to the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital in Ipoh.

The trailer lorry driver sustained minor injuries in the crash.

It is learnt that the family, who hailed from Kelantan, was en route to the Sungai Siput Police Quarters after having dinner at a nearby restaurant when the accident occurred.

An initial investigation revealed that the trailer lorry driver, who was heading towards Kuala Kangsar, lost control of his vehicle and veered into the opposite lane, before coming into contact with the Saga.

Firemen attend to the crash site involving a trailer and a car. - NSTP/Balqis Jazimah Zahari

"Faiz, who was driving, could not avoid the lorry in time and hit the side of the heavy vehicle. Some of the construction equipment on the trailer then collapsed onto the car,” said district police chief Superintendent Mohd Khaizam Ahmad Shahabudin, who added that the deceased were taken to the Sungai Siput Hospital here for post-mortems; while the injured toddler was transferred to the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital for further treatment.

Khaizam said that police have arrested the 26-year-old trailer lorry driver and that the case is being investigated under Section 41(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987 for reckless driving.

Meanwhile, Sungai Siput Fire and Rescue Department chief of operation, Jeffrey Abdullah, said that they received a distress call on the accident at 10.26pm and despatched 10 firemen to the scene.

"Upon arrival, we found that the bodies of the baby and his mother had been extricated from the damaged Saga by members of the public.

“The three other victims were still pinned to their seats," he added.