The authorities have begun its probe on the cause of a bus crash in Perak that killed 27 people, mostly Thai tourists, in the worst coach accident in the nation's history.

The Thai holidaymakers were returning to the capital Kuala Lumpur from the Cameron Highlands on Monday when their double-decker bus lost control near a sharp bend, crashed through a road divider and overturned into a ditch.

NONE"Our final count as of this morning is that 27 people were killed in the bus accident," said Zakaria Yusof, acting police chief in Perak state. On Monday the toll had been put at 28.

The dead included two Malaysians, the driver and a tour guide, Zakaria told AFP. "There was confusion yesterday on the ground as it was believed that three Malaysians were killed," he said.

Police said the vehicle had been traveling along a winding road after leaving the hilltop resort when the driver lost control and crashed into the ditch at the bottom of a rocky slope.

The horrific accident sheared off the bus's roof, and left the bodies of victims strewn across the road.

Coach accidents are relatively common in Malaysia, often involving interstate routes and accompanied by revelations that drivers were unlicensed, speeding or under the influence of drugs to keep themselves awake.

Transport Minister Kong Cho Ha said the Malaysian Research Institute on Road Safety (Miros) has been charged with investigating the cause of the tragedy.

"Only Miros could carry out the detailed analysis and determine whether it was due to the condition of the road, or technical failure on the part of the bus," Kong said, according to the official news agency Bernama.

Survivors being interviewed

Investigators were also interviewing the survivors of the crash, he said.

Zakaria said the police would assist in the probe.

"We can't say exactly what caused the crash for now except that the driver lost control of the bus," he said.

NONE"We don't know what caused him to lose control and the police are still investigating to find out who owned the bus, how the driver was hired and his qualifications."

Monday's accident was the latest in a series in Malaysia. In October a collision involving two buses, a van and three cars claimed 13 lives on the nation's main north-south highway.

Later that month another seven people were killed when their bus overturned en route to Kuala Lumpur. It was later found that the driver had no licence.

A year ago, 10 people were killed when a double-decker bus struck a road divider in northern Ipoh state.

In 2007, a bus crash claimed 22 lives in what the government said at the time was the worst accident of its kind in Malaysia's history.

Thai victims to be flown home tomorrow

Meanwhile, the bodies of the Thai passengers killed and other Thais injured will be flown home using a Royal Thai Air Force C-130 transport aircraft tomorrow.

Thailand's Foreign Ministry deputy spokesman Thani Thongpakdi was quoted in the Bangkok Post Online today as saying that the C-130 Hercules would leave for Malaysia about 8am tomorrow from the Don Muang Air Force Terminal. 

He said other than a team of doctors and Consular Affairs Department deputy irector-general Mathurapojana Ittharong on board, a relative of each of the victims would also be allowed to travel on the plane.

Thani said he had learned that the company that operated the package tour ad an insurance policy that covered all passengers. 

Police: Crash possibly due to human, technical errors