Four killed in train/truck accident

Four killed in train/truck accident

JAKARTA (JP): Four people were killed and two were injured on
Monday when a Parahyangan passenger train traveling from Jakarta
to Bandung crashed into a truck at a railway crossing near the
Bekasi train station, east of here.

Reports quoted officials of the state run train company PT KAI
and police as saying that a signalman at the site apparently
raised the level crossing gates too soon, not realizing that the
train was about to pass.

The truck, loaded with rocks, was struck by the train, then
hit a sedan. Witnesses said the truck then dragged the sedan and
two motorcycles for about 400 meters, until it fell into a river.
As of 7 p.m. locals and rescue workers were still trying to raise
the wrecked truck.

Fatalities included the truck driver Masidik, 35, a motorcycle
passenger Rachmawati, 27, Nyai Rahayu, 20, and an unidentified
man riding the second motorcycle. All were residents of Bekasi.

Rachmawati's husband Wasman, 32, sustained serious injuries to
his head while his four-year-old son, Akbar, suffered injuries to
his arm and face.

Wasman was rushed to the Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital
in Central Jakarta, while his son was hospitalized at Mekar Sari
Hospital in Bekasi.

Although the front part of the train was damaged and its
passengers traumatized, the train managed to continue its journey
to Bandung, West Java.

According to Bekasi Police chief Supt. Sutarman, the collision
did not affect train schedules. Traffic around the railway
crossing was temporarily closed for about 30 minutes following
the accident.

Sutarman said two employees at the crossing post and several
witnesses, including head of the Bekasi train station, were taken
to the police station for questioning.

Last month a similar train accident occurred in Cimahi, West
Java, killing four people.(07)