Derailment paralyzes rail links
Derailment paralyzes rail links
ID Nugroho, The Jakarta Post , Surabaya
The north coast rail line from East Java to Central Java remained
at a standstill on Friday after an economy-class train derailed
in the country's second largest city, Surabaya, killing one
passenger and injuring seven others.
State rail operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) had to
cancel all trains on the Surabaya-Semarang-Tawang line, including
Rajawali trains.
Other trains traveling to and from Surabaya were rerouted onto
the south coast line.
It is not clear yet when the north coast line will return to
normal as KAI needed to repair the track and lift the derailed
cars using a crane.
A Kertajaya train jumped the tracks at around 3 p.m. on
Thursday in the Benowo area on the outskirts of Surabaya. It was
traveling from the nearby Pasarturi railway station to Senen
station in Central Jakarta.
Four of its 13 carriages derailed, leaving at least eight
passengers injured. One of them, identified as M. Faqih, died a
few hours later.
Rescue workers had to amputate Faqih's leg in order to lift
him out as it had been trapped by steel beams.
After his leg was amputated, the victim was later rushed to
the Dr. Soetomo General Hospital, while the other injured victims
were taken to the Darrussifah Islamic Hospital in Benowo.
Doctors at the Dr. Soetomo Hospital said Faqih died from
serious bleeding.
A physician at the Dr. Soetomo Hospital, Dr. Oerip Murtedjo,
said Faqih, from Bojonegoro district in East Java, had died
before his arrival at the hospital.
Most of the injured people were discharged from the Benowo
hospital on Friday. Only two victims with serious injuries --
passenger Sukarsih, 57, and train driver M. Yusuf, 30 -- were
still being treated.
PT KAI and state-owned insurance provider PT Jasa Raharja
promised to compensate the injured and the family of the
deceased, and cover their medical costs.
PT KAI and the police are still investigating the cause of the
accident.
The country's railways are in a chronic state of disrepair,
with frequent derailments and other accidents blamed by
transportation experts and others on poor maintenance and
management.
Passengers frequently cling to the sides of packed cars or
perch on the roof.