Malaysia has set up a special task force to investigate the death of a teenager who was electrocuted while charging his mobile phone using a power outlet on a bus in Penang state.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said the panel comprising officials from the road transport department, the land public transport agency and the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research would probe the cause of the incident to prevent such future occurrences and ensure passenger safety.
“The ministry of transport treats this electric shock incident, which tragically resulted in the death of a teenager while he was charging his phone on the express bus, with utmost seriousness,” Loke said in a statement on Sunday.
Loke added the operations of the vehicle have been suspended, a decision that Abu Hassan Awang, president of the Peninsular Malaysia Malay Express Bus Operators Association, decried as stringent.
Awang said the government should have waited for the conclusion of the investigation before penalising the bus company.
The incident happened last Friday when Mohamad Nur Asymawi Jasmadi, 18, was on the bus heading to Kuala Lumpur.
Witnesses heard screams from the victim and found him frothing at the mouth, local media reported.
