City bus kills schoolgirl at Pulogadung terminal

JAKARTA (JP): A reckless city bus driver has been blamed for the death of nine-year-old girl at Pulogadung Bus Terminal in East Jakarta yesterday.

Witnesses said that the victim, identified as Novian Anggreini, was walking with her friends after school when the speeding Mayasari Bakti bus, plying the Pulogadung-Kota route, struck her.

The driver was apparently unable to control the bus and fled the scene of the accident to avoid the retaliation of angry passengers.

When they were unable to located the driver, the crowd began smashing the bus. Officials from the terminal eventually intervened.

Mochtar, an officer of the City Land Transportation Agency, said that he was not surprised that the driver ran away.

"Nobody would want to put their fate in the hands of such an angry crowd," he said. "But don't worry, we'll definitely take him to the police as he has already been identified.

"It was his fault so he has to be held responsible for the accident."

He said the bus terminal was less crowded than usual so there was plenty of space for buses to drop off and pick up passengers.

Novian, a third year student of state elementary school SDN 03 Pulogadung, was taken to Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital's morgue for a postmortem examination.

She was a resident of Kali Abang Ilir in Bekasi.

In an unrelated incident, a nine-year-old girl was electrocuted at the Goro wholesale shop's playground in Bekasi on Wednesday.

The victim, identified as Sipah Pujiah, had earlier taken a ride on her favorite minitrain with her brother, Isa, the girl's father, Madalik, said.

Sipah accidentally stepped on one of the train tracks afterward and she collapsed, Madalik, who accompanied her to the playground, said.

She died yesterday at Mitra Medika General Hospital.

"I will not sue Goro as its executives have come to my house and helped take care of all the expenses for my daughter's funeral," he said. (04)