BUKIT MERTAJAM: A Perodua Alza driven by a man under the influence of alcohol rear-ended a motorcycle, killing the rider and seriously injuring the pillion rider, at Km140.2 of the North-South Expressway (NSE), northbound, at the exit to Perai here, on Sunday.
Factory worker Khairizul Mohamad Noor, 39, died on the spot; while his wife, Zuriana Hasan, 36, was rushed to the Seberang Jaya Hospital (HSJ), where she is in critical condition.
The couple has five children, Bernama reported.
The 34-year-old Perodua Alza driver was not harmed in the accident. After a breath test revealed that he was drunk while behind the wheel, the driver was transported to the HSJ to undergo a blood test to determine his blood alcohol level.
“The body (of Khairizul) was taken to the same hospital for a post-mortem, before being handed over to the family,” said Seberang Perai Tengah police chief Assistant Commissioner Nik Ros Azhan Nik Abdul Hamid.
A family member who wanted to be identified only as Khairuddin said the couple was on their way home to Butterworth after having dinner with the wife’s siblings when the accident occurred.
“Zuriana is still unconscious. She does not know her husband has died,” he added.