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36 dead in C. Java train collision
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has ordered a thorough investigation into a fatal train crash that killed 36 people in Pemalang regency, Central Java, on Saturday
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resident Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has ordered a thorough investigation into a fatal train crash that killed 36 people in Pemalang regency, Central Java, on Saturday.
The President said he demanded sanctions for those found responsible for the accident.
“President SBY has expressed his condolences and deep concern for the victims and their families,” presidential spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha told a press conference in Jakarta eight hours after the
accident.
“The President has ordered the transportation minister, health minister and the state-owned enterprises minister to handle the case properly including the rescue of the victims,” he said.
The accident happened at 3 a.m. local time when the speeding executive train Argo Bromo Anggrek, on its way from Jakarta to Surabaya, crashed into the back of the stationary business-class train Senja Utama, traveling from Jakarta to Semarang, at the Petarukan railway station in Pemalang.
Ninety minutes later in Surakarta, Central Java, economy train Gaya Baru collided with executive train Bima at Purwosari Station, killing one and seriously injuring two.
Gaya Baru was alleged to have parked well short of its designated birth at the platform, leaving its rear carriage on the railroad track switch behind the station, causing the Bima train to collide with it.
Julian said the President had ordered Central Java Governor Bibit Waluyo to take part in the rescue and evacuation.
“The central government is ready to provide support anytime needed. He [the President] is monitoring the situation, and has said … should the investigation uncover negligence, there will be sanctions.”
When asked if it was possible that Transportation Minister Freddy Numberi could lose his job over
the incidents, Julian said it would depend on the results of the investigation.
There have been several major railway accidents in the country over the past two years.
In June this year, six people were killed and dozens were injured when a train derailed between Nganjuk and Madiun, East Java.
The Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI) has urged Minister Numberi to apologize to the victims’ families and step down from his post.
“A massive accident that has killed more than 30 people has occurred. This cannot pass unheeded because this is supposed to be the government’s responsibility through the transportation minister. He must apologize and resign,” Tulus Abadi, a member of the YLKI executive board, said as quoted by Antara news agency.
Numberi said the government would thoroughly evaluate the management of state-owned railway company PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI).
He said that if the accident was the result of negligence, heavy sanctions would be handed down to those responsible and that KAI’s president director would be dismissed.
“The sanctions will be administered according to the law,” he was quoted as saying by Antara.
The accident happened when Senja Utama, carrying 663 passengers in nine carriages, stopped at the station platform to allow Argo Bromo to pass. However, the latter, carrying 336 passengers in seven carriages, was running on the same tracks as Senja.
The majority of the dead were passengers in Senja Utama’s rear carriage, which was hit directly by Argo Bromo. Senja Utama’s second- and third-last carriages were turned upside down.
To the rescue: Police and residents attend to the wreckage of two trains that collided in Pemalang, Central Java, on Saturday. Reuters/Gusti Dara
Local residents rushed to the scene of the accident, working with simple tools to free the injured. Some were seen forcibly pulling out injured passengers who were still trapped in the wreckage.
The injured were carried to houses near the tracks before being taken to local hospitals.
Fourteen people were being treated for serious injuries.
KAI director Ignatius Jonan said he could not comment on the cause of the accident until the National Commission of Transportation Safety (KNKT) had completed their investigation.
“We have to wait for the results of the investigation by the KNKT. We will not speculate,” he said at the scene of the accident.
He said the victims of the accident were covered by accident insurance.
Central Java Police chief Insp. Gen. Edward Aritonang was also at the crash scene.
He said the police had questioned nine witnesses, including the Argo Bromo driver and his assistant.
“We are still developing the case, in cooperation with the KNKT. We suspect human error is behind the accident, whether a traffic attendant or the driver,” he said.
Senja Utama continued from the scene of the accident, leaving behind its three damaged carriages. Argo Bromo remained stationary for a few hours before completing its journey.
