Flood of people not all sailing after Idul Fitri
Flood of people not all sailing after Idul Fitri
The Jakarta Post, Cirebon/Yogyakarta/Surabaya
People began to pour into bus terminals, seaports and train
stations around the country to return to the country's cities
after celebrating Idul Fitri in their hometowns.
However, a string of accidents sent a strong reminder to
travelers that such journeys could be fraught with danger and
delays.
In the South Sumatra capital Palembang, thousands of people
arrived at Kertapati train station from other towns in the
province, including Tanjung Karang and Lubuk Linggau.
Prior to Idul Fitri last Tuesday and Wednesday about 3,000
passengers used the station, most heading home to celebrate with
families. On Idul Fitri itself, the number of people dropped to
1,700 people per day but the number had since began to rise.
Thursday saw 2,448 passengers but numbers are expected to peak
Sunday.
Most flights from the Southeast Sulawesi capital of Kendari to
Makassar, Surabaya and Jakarta are fully booked from Friday to
Sunday and were expected to sell out.
In the East Java capital Surabaya, more people arrived at
Ujung Seaport in Surabaya. They mostly came from the neighboring
island of Madura. In contrast, few people were seen heading in
the opposite direction on Friday.
Several passengers heading to Surabaya acknowledged they had
cut short their holidays to get to Surabaya early for fear they
would not make it home when the crowds peaked over the weekend.
"It is much more convenient to go to Surabaya right now than
on Saturday or Sunday," said Nur Alila, as quoted by the Antara
news agency.
In the Central Kalimantan regency of Sampit, thousands of
people began to stream into Patih Rumbih bus terminal. Bus
companies were unable to accommodate them on their way to
Palangkaraya, the capital of Central Kalimantan.
It forced local government officials to provide additional
transportation to accommodate the travelers, including several
trucks, minibuses and minivans. The trips were not free.
In separate developments, two people were killed and six
others injured on Friday when a Toyota Kijang minivan rolled
after its tire burst on the Kalipanci toll road in the West Java
regency of Cirebon.
The dead were driver Satkimin, 44, a resident of Tangerang
regency and Suherni, 70, a resident of Central Lampung.
As of Friday at least 30 people had been killed in 24 road
accidents from Nov. 17 in West Java alone, West Java police
said.
Nearly 20 others had been badly injured and another 42
injured.
Meanwhile, the Gaya Baru train, on its way from Jakarta to
Surabaya derailed in Cirebon district early Friday morning. No
casualties were reported.
The derailment in Bantarsari village caused six hour delays to
a number of other train services.