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

The bus was heading to neighbouring Singapore when it spun out of control in southern Johor state and crashed, a police spokesman told The Associated Press.

All of the victims were Malaysian, he said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media.

Muar police chief ACP Nasir Mohd Ali said the bus was carrying 28 people, including the driver and co-driver, when the accident occurred at about 2am when it was travelling from Ipoh to Johor Baharu.

The injured passengers and the nine bodies have been taken to the Sultanah Fatimah Specialist Hospital here.

Initial investigations revealed that the driver lost control of the vehicle and it skidded and overturned, jolting the passengers out of their sleep.

The police and Fire and Rescue personnel took about an hour to remove the body of the driver who was pinned to his badly crushed seat.

The cause of the accident was not immediately known and no other details were available, Mr Nasir said.

Malaysia has a high-quality highway system with a speed limit of 110 kilometres per hour. But speeding is common and many drivers often do not follow safety procedures. -- AP, BERNAMA