An 18-year-old man and his two younger siblings, an 11-year-old boy and an eight-year-old girl, died after their motorcycle collided with a lorry in Pontian, Johor, on Thursday morning (8 October 2026).
Their mother told Sinar Harian that the three had visited the younger children’s school, found it closed because of haze and turned back towards home.
Mother Said She Had Already Told Them About Closure
Speaking to Sinar Harian, their mother said she had informed the two younger children that they did not need to attend school that day.
However, they still wanted to go. Their older brother then took them there so they could see that the school was closed.
She said she was later told that the school’s CCTV had recorded the siblings arriving on the motorcycle before turning around.
According to her account, the school was about 2km from their home. The crash happened roughly 200m from the family’s house.
A person on the way to work alerted the family, after which her husband and eldest son went to the scene.
Johor’s Education and Information Committee chairman, Muhammad Naqib Md Ghazali, also said the family had received school-closure notices through school communication channels, including WhatsApp groups, according to Kosmo.
Police Investigating Collision
RTM reported that the crash occurred at about 7:20am on Jalan Parit Haji Sirat.
According to a police statement reported by RTM and Sinar Harian, the motorcycle and lorry had been travelling in opposite directions before the collision.
The two younger siblings died at the scene. Their 18-year-old brother died while being taken to Hospital Pontian.
The lorry’s 69-year-old driver sustained injuries to a hand and both knees and received treatment, RTM reported.
Police are investigating the collision.
Naqib told reporters that preliminary information indicated fog and haze had limited visibility in the area. However, he stressed that investigators had yet to establish whether those conditions caused the crash, Kosmo reported.
Johor Schools Closed For Two Days
The crash occurred on the first day of Johor’s statewide school closure on 8 and 9 October.
The closure was announced on 7 October following a directive from Johor Regent Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, amid worsening haze and air quality.
Naqib said students would continue learning from home during the closure. Assessments affected by the shutdown would be rescheduled according to arrangements made by the Johor Education Department and the relevant authorities.
