Gumarang train derails

BANDUNG (JP): The executive-class Gumarang train plying the Surabaya-Jakarta route derailed at the Cikampek railway station in West Java, at about 5 a.m. on Wednesday.

The derailment, about 70 kilometers from Jakarta, caused a two-hour delay of trains from Central and East Java to Jakarta. Spokesman for PT Kereta Api Indonesia (PT KAI) of the Operational Area II Akhmad Sujadi said there were no fatalities. "It was the coach with the power generator that derailed. The derailed coach was then left in Cikampek, while the eight other coaches with 350 passengers proceeded to Jakarta at 7:30 a.m. but without electricity."

He added that three of five tracks at the Cikampek railway station could not be used for several hours due to the derailment. "The three tracks are used by trains from Central and East Java.

Several trains from Jakarta to Semarang, Yogyakarta, Surabaya and Bandung arrived late on Wednesday morning.

The Argo Gede train arrived in Bandung almost one hour behind schedule.

Wednesday's derailment was the seventh such incident in Cikampek this year. Three took place on the Cikampek-Jakarta track, the other three were on the Cikampek-Bandung track," Akhmad said.

Akhmad said he had yet to be informed on the cause of the incident.

According to Akhmad, the Cikampek-Bandung route was vulnerable to landslides as the soil beneath the railroad sleepers is unstable. (25/sur)