JERTIH: A survivor of the bus crash that killed 15 university students in Perak earlier this week has spoken of a sense of foreboding she felt before the journey, which ended in one of the country’s deadliest road accidents this year.
Nurul Athirah Zakaria, 23, was among the passengers on board a chartered bus travelling from Jertih, Terengganu, to Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) in Tanjung Malim, when it collided with a Perodua Alza and overturned on the East-West Highway (Jalan Raya Timur-Barat) in Gerik.
Among the dead was her closest friend, Nurly Shahirah Azman, whom she had known since Form One at Sekolah Menengah Imtiaz Besut.
She told Bernama she had expressed a sense of unease to her mother, Rosmawati Muda, 57, before boarding the ill-fated bus, but was reassured not to dwell on negative thoughts.
“That night turned out to be the most tragic of my life. I lost my best friend,” said Nurul Athirah, who is recovering at home in Kampung Padang Landak from injuries to her lungs, leg and head.
Authorities confirmed that 15 students were killed and 33 others injured, including the bus driver, his assistant, and all four occupants of the Perodua Alza.
Nurul Athirah, a third-year Islamic education student and, like Nurly Shahirah, a hafizah (Quran memoriser), had planned to sit next to her friend on the left side of the bus. But when another student took the seat, she sat across the aisle instead.
“Just before the accident, I saw that she was still awake. I don’t remember what happened after that, as I was thrown from the bus and lost consciousness,” she said.
She regained consciousness around 3 am and was helped by a couple passing the scene to contact her family.
“At that moment, I thought I was going to die. I just wanted to speak to my mother one last time,” she said.
