Survivor loses childhood friend in NSE factory bus crash

BUKIT MERTAJAM: A 40-year-old factory worker, who survived an accident along the North South Expressway today, has lost her childhood friend in the incident.
Noor Shakirah Ishak, a Plexus factory worker, said her friend, Noriah Kasa, 40, was killed in the accident as she was stuck in her seat after the two factory buses crashed at about 6am.
Noor Shakirah said she and Noriah, who was from Parit Sungai Dungun, were in the bus as they were on the 7am shift at the factory in Bayan Lepas.
"At the time, I was sleeping in the bus but I thought the bus was not going toot fast. I was awakened by the crash. I was told to get out of the bus through the emergency door by the driver when I tried to find out what had happened," she told reporters in Seberang Jaya Hospital.
Noor Shakirah added that Noriah was lying motionless when she found her childhood friend had been stuck in her seat.
She said Noriah was the only casualty inside her bus while the other seven killed were from the other bus.
Noriah and the seven foreign women were killed in an accident at KM 147 of the North-South expressway here.
The two buses were ferrying 37 women and three men when the accident occurred at about 5.30am.
Central Seberang Prai district police chief ACP Nik Ros Azhan Nik Abdul Hamid said besides the eight women who were killed in the accident, there were also 23 victims who suffered major injuries while another 10 suffered minor injuries.