12 killed in Subang collisions

CIREBON, West Java: At least 12 people died instantly and dozens of others, many in a critical condition, were injured in two separate bus collisions on West Java's northern highway connecting Jakarta and Central and East Java.

Five people were killed in a head-on collision between a Lur Agung bus and a truck loaded with chicken eggs in Batang Ekspres Village, Pamanukan, Subang regency, on Saturday. Twenty-two others who were injured in the accident were rushed to the public health center in Pamanukan.

Three passengers, the truck driver and the conductor, who died on the spot, have yet to be identified.

Adj. Comr. Dadang Kartobing, chief of the traffic unit at the Subang Police, said the collision occurred when the bus tried to overtake several vehicles in front but collided with the oncoming truck.

On the same highway, another collision also occurred between a Sinar Jaya bus and a container truck at Patokbeusi, Subang Regency, early on Saturday, killing seven passengers and injuring 72 others.

Dadang said four passengers were killed instantly, plus three others who died in a nearby hospital.

The driver of the container truck and conductor escaped and are still at large.

Dadang said the collision occurred when the truck, which was on its way from Cirebon to Jakarta, tried to overtake several vehicles in front and collided with the oncoming bus. The bus overturned, while the front of the truck was badly damaged.

The truck hit a minibus that later caught fire, a motorcycle and a food stand before colliding with the bus.

The bus was carrying some about 80 passengers from Tangerang, Banten, to Kutoarjo in Central Java.

On Friday, another accident also occurred between a minibus and a container truck near the collision site, killing four passengers of the minibus.

Last week, at least eleven people were killed in a major collision between two passenger buses in Indramayu.

The frequency of accidents along this highway has a lot to do with damage on certain sections of the highway, poor motorist discipline and the heavy traffic.

Millions of vehicles use the highway every day. --JP