Truck pileup kills three

TANGERANG: Three people died, and two others were injured in a pileup involving three trucks and one jeep at the kilometer 24 mark on the Jakarta-Merak toll road, near Cikupa district of Tangerang regency, late on Sunday.

The fatalities were the jeep's driver Suharto Kosasih, 51, a resident of Sukasari subdistrict, Tangerang, and Iklan, 47, the driver of a truck with license plate number B 9015 OJ, and his assistant Jais, 64.

The injured are Karno, 38, and Hamid, 40, who was hitching a ride in Iklan's truck. They are now being treated at Al-qadr Hospital in Karawaci.

According to Insp. Samsu, head of Tangerang Police traffic unit, the accident took place at about 11:30 p.m. Citing witnesses accounts, Samsu said, Iklan was driving at high speed from Banten to Sukabumi and hit the tow bar and chain linking the two trucks, which were parked almost in the middle of the road.

The front truck was overturned upon impact. A speeding jeep coming from the opposite direction hit the truck.

Samsu said the police took in Jana, the driver of the front truck, for questioning. -- JP