Kota-Serpong train catches fire, pregnant woman hurt escaping blaze
Kota-Serpong train catches fire, pregnant woman hurt escaping blaze
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Two cars of an economy-class electric commuter train traveling
from Jakarta Kota railway station in West Jakarta to Serpong,
Tangerang, caught fire near Permata Hijau railway station in
Kebayoran Lama, South Jakarta, late Tuesday.
Terrified passengers jumped out of the cars while a pregnant
woman broke her leg while trying to escape the blaze.
Director of Trains at the Ministry of Communications, Harris
Fabillah, who was monitoring the situation, gave assurances that
the trains would be running as normal on Wednesday morning.
He also said that all the injured passengers could seek
reimbursement from the PT Jasa Raharja insurance company for
their medical expenses.
"Whether they had tickets or not, the company will pay their
medical expenses," he said.
The incident caused severe traffic congestion for homeward
bound motorists with cars backed up by much as one kilometer
along Jl. Tentara Pelajar, South Jakarta.
Eyewitnesses said that the two cars, manufactured in 1994,
caught fire at approximately 7:30 p.m. The blaze is thought to
have been the result of a technical problem with the overhead
electricity cables.
"I saw a cable sparking, and it touched one car. In no time at
all the car was ablaze," said Handoko, a nearby resident who
witnessed the incident.
He said that fire spread slowly enough for the passengers to
escape.
"A pregnant woman was too scared to jump from the car, but her
husband pushed her out with his foot. She broke her leg," he
said.
Not long after the accident, 10 fire trucks arrived at the
scene and had the fire extinguished by around 8 p.m.
Dozens of ambulances also arrived, but all the passengers,
including the pregnant woman, had already left the scene.
The smoldering cars were shunted to Kebayoran Lama train
station, about one kilometer away from the scene.
Harris said that one car was a write-off, while another one
could still be repaired.
At 9:30 p.m., a diesel commuter train was allowed to progress
past the scene.
"We have to halt all electric train traffic for tonight as we
have to repair the electricity cables," said Mulyono, a mechanic
with state-owned railway company PT KAI. "The repairs will take
about three to four hours, but in the morning traffic will be
back to normal again."