9 dead in Malaysian bus crash

A bus skidded off a highway, smashed into a tree and plunged into a ditch in southern Malaysia early Sunday, killing nine people and injuring 19 others.

A bus skidded off a highway, smashed into a tree and plunged into a ditch in southern Malaysia early Sunday, killing nine people and injuring 19 others. The bus was heading to neighboring Singapore when it spun out of control in southern Johor state and crashed, a police spokesman told The Associated Press.

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All of the victims were Malaysian, he said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. The cause of the accident was not immediately known and no other details were available, he said.

Malaysia has a high-quality highway system with a speed limit of 70 miles (110 kilometers) per hour. But speeding is common and many drivers often do not follow safety procedures.