1 dead and 12 injured after bus carrying Japanese tourists smashes into truck in Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — A Japanese tourist died and 12 other people were injured when a tour bus smashed into the rear of a truck on a highway in Malaysia, one of Japan's largest travel agencies said Friday.

JTB Corp. said the crash happened Thursday in Perak state in central Malaysia, as the bus was heading from Penang to the Cameron Highlands, a popular tourist destination dotted with tea plantations.

One woman in her 70s succumbed to her injuries and died, JTB President and CEO Eijiro Yamakita told a news conference in Tokyo.

Malaysia's fire and rescue department said the bus was carrying three men and eight women from Japan, all senior citizens, as well as a bus driver and a local tour guide. It said all 13 victims were carried out in stretchers and taken to hospital after receiving initial treatment on site.

Yamakita said some of the survivors were seriously injured. He said their exact conditions were unknown, and that the cause of the crash was under investigation.

Pictures provided by the fire department showed the front portion of the bus badly mangled, with a shattered windscreen.

''As a travel agency, we are truly sorry about this incident and offer our deepest apologies,'' Yamakita said.

The company said it is fully cooperating with local authorities and the Japanese embassy in Malaysia, and has sent staff from its Kuala Lumpur office as well as from Tokyo to provide support for the passengers and their relatives.

Yamakita said the bus was hired by a local tour operator, and that it met JTB's safety standards.

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AP writer Mari Yamaguchi contributed from Tokyo.