Police almost complete probe into cause of blast<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The National Police has almost completed its
\nexamination on the cause of Wednesday's explosion at the Research
\nCenter for Technology of Reactor Salvation of the National Atomic
\nEnergy Agency (BATAN) in Serpong.<\/p>\n
\"Fifty percent of the work has been completed. The final
\nconclusion is scheduled to be announced on Monday (today),\" a
\nteam member of the Forensic Laboratory which conducted the
\nexamination said over the weekend.<\/p>\n
The officer, who asked not to be identified, said the team
\nexamined a wide range of objects, such as filings and fractures
\nof some of the materials, to determine the cause of the accident.<\/p>\n
The BATAN research center, along with other related
\ninstitutions, is located at the Science and Technology Research
\nCenter (Puspitek) complex in Serpong, an area 30 kilometers
\nsouthwest of Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The blast at the BATAN research center on Wednesday afternoon
\nkilled a staff member and injured a cleaning service worker.<\/p>\n
A spokesman for the National Police, Capt. Suyatmo, refused to
\ncomment, saying that the forensic laboratory examination of the
\ncase is still underway, while the investigation of the accident,
\nincluding the questioning of several witnesses, is concurrently
\nbeing carried out by the city police personnel.<\/p>\n
\"We hope that the final result from the police forensic
\nlaboratory can be announced soon,\" he told reporters over the
\nweekend.<\/p>\n
Based on the investigation, the police have yet to deduce the
\ncause of the blast -- a pure accident, or sabotage aimed at
\nfoiling the government's plan to establish the first nuclear
\npower plant in order to meet the increasing demands of
\nelectricity. The nuclear power plant is to be built in Muria
\npeninsular, Central Java.<\/p>\n
BATAN's Director General Djali Ahimsa told reporters on Friday
\nthat the accident caused no radiation leaks.<\/p>\n
BATAN is a state-owned agency which administers the nuclear
\nlaboratory along with its 30 megawatt research reactor, provided
\nby Siemens AG of Germany.<\/p>\n
The explosion took place at around 1:30 p.m. during the lunch-
\nbreak hours. The single deceased, identified as Waluyo, 39, was
\nbelieved to have been taking a nap when the blast happened, while
\nthe cleaning service employee, Supriyanto, 26, was painting a
\nwall.<\/p>\n
Waluyo suffered a serious wound to the head and died on the
\nway to the hospital.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian Environmental Forum (Walhi), a non-governmental
\norganization, demanded that the government thoroughly inspect the
\nextent of the damage and determine whether the blast caused
\nradiation leaks.<\/p>\n
Emmy Hafidz, a spokesperson for Walhi, told The Jakarta Post
\nthat the government should announce the results of the
\ninvestigation on the cause of the explosion because the public
\nhas the right to know. (bsr)<\/p>",
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