13 people killed in train-truck collision

13 people killed in train-truck collision

PEKALONGAN, Central Java (JP): At least 13 people were killed
and eight others injured after a train, the Empu Jaya, traveling
between Purwokerto (Central Java) and Jakarta hit an intercity
bus at a railway crossing close to the Kemisik River in the
village of Pakulaut, Magersari district, Tegal regency, some 165
kilometers west of the Central Java capital of Semarang in the
early hours of Wednesday.

Nurnan, 32, a local resident who witnessed the accident said
that the Sinar Jaya bus plying the Jakarta-Purwokerto route was
at the crossing, which was not closed, when the train was
speeding through the crossing.

"I don't have any idea why the crossing gate was not closed.
The bus was thrown about 50 meters and I saw many passengers
flying out of the bus," he said.

The bus hit a concrete pole near the Kemisik bridge, while the
train was only able to come to a stop at Prupuk station, some 1.5
kilometers from the accident site.

Police said that the bus was carrying 40 passengers; one of
the victims was Darsono, 40, the bus driver.

Some other witnesses said that they had shouted to the railway
crossing attendants to alert them of the approaching train.

"We shouted out loud to the railway cross attendants as we saw
a train coming," said Yito, a driver of a motorcycle taxi (ojek),
who was some meters away from the railway track when the accident
took place.

He believed that Slamet Sahroni, the railway crossing
attendant was asleep at the time.

Local police surmised that the accident was a result of
negligence on the part of the railway crossing attendant.

The injured passengers along with the deceased were rushed to
Dr. Soesilo general hospital in Slawi.

Slamet, the crossing attendant, the train driver, Parwoto, 37,
and some bus passengers who were uninjured were questioned by
local police over the accident.

According to the police the deceased were identified as
Nirsem, 44, a Jakarta resident, Sutarjo, 48, a Banyumas resident,
Kasiyanti, 30, from Kebumen, Central Java, Jono, 36, from Kebumen
and Karsun Mahmudi, 30, also from Kebumen.

"Police are having difficulty identifying the dead," Slawi
Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Lutfi Lubihanto said.

The accident caused a five-hour delay for all trains using the
same line. (45/har/sur)