Teenager electrocuted to death: Malaysia temporarily bans the use of power sockets on express buses

KUALA LUMPUR – The Malaysian Land Public Transport Agency (Apad) has temporarily banned the use of power sockets on express buses until the investigation into the alleged electrocution of a youth on a bus has been completed, said Transport Minister Anthony Loke.

“Currently, all buses are temporarily not allowed to use these sockets. We want to determine the cause of the electrocution incident,” Mr Loke said in Parliament on November 7.

He said the special task force appointed to investigate the matter has been given fourteen days to prepare a report on the cause of the incident.

Mr Loke added that the report’s findings would be made public and that the Energy Committee had been asked for advice.

“After the Special Task Force finalizes the report, we are ready to work with the Energy Commission if the ministry needs to make improvements in the areas of reviewing standard operating procedures (SOPs) and whether to allow the use of power sockets on buses ” he said. said.

Mr Loke was responding to a supplementary question from Merbok MP Mohd Nazri Abu Hassan on whether the ministry will work with the Energy Commission and Apad to ensure that sockets and lights that require electricity are tested for safety before approval is given .

To another supplementary question from Tanjung Manis MP Yusuf Abd Wahab on the safety of such charging ports on flights, Mr Loke said there are standards that aircraft manufacturers must adhere to when installing these ports.

Similarly, trains on the Electric Train Service – an inter-city rail service – must also adhere to a standard.

He said the ministry will revise the SOPs to include safety checks for buses.

On November 2, an 18-year-old was found unconscious in his seat on an express bus in Penang Sentral at around 6pm. The incident is said to have occurred after the victim was electrocuted while charging his phone on the bus. Witnesses reported hearing the victim scream before he began foaming at the mouth.

Police investigation after interviewing a witness revealed that the victim had boarded the express bus to KL Sentral.

A post-mortem conducted at Seberang Jaya Hospital revealed no other injuries and found no evidence of foul play.

On November 3, Mr Loke announced the establishment of a special task force to investigate the incident.

The task force consists of staff from Apad, the Road Transport Department and the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK