Landslide-hit road reopened to traffic after 42 bodies recovered
Landslide-hit road reopened to traffic after 42 bodies recovered
Imran Rusli, Padang
The Ujung Gading-Panti road connecting Padang and Medan, the
capital of North Sumatra, reopened on Monday after the route was
cut by a deadly landslide last Friday that left 42 people dead,
all passengers on the same bus.
The PO ALS bus that was buried under an avalanche of mud
during the deadly landslide has been cleared from the road.
"Traffic has returned to normal," said Adj. Comr. M. Zaini,
the chief of East Pasaman Police, when contacted by The Jakarta
Post on Tuesday.
He said the cleanup of debris and mud along the road had been
completed on Monday, and the bodies of all of the victims had
been recovered.
The officer confirmed that a total of 39 bus passengers died
at the scene, three died later at Lubuk Sikaping Hospital, three
were badly injured, eight were slightly injured and four
passengers escaped the incident unharmed.
The landslide occurred as the bus was traveling through Panti
subdistrict during a rainstorm. The bus was heading from East
Pasaman regency in West Sumatra to Medan.
Although traffic had returned to normal on Tuesday, a
government official warned motorists to remain vigilant for more
possible landslides in the area.
"Landslides can happen at anytime, especially on rainy days,"
said Yazid, an official in the road infrastructure office at the
East Pasaman regency administration.
Officials blame landslides in the area on rampant
deforestation. The Rimbo Panti forest, which used to cover the
hills about the highway, has been heavily deforested and large
areas of land are completely denuded.
The executive director of the West Sumatra chapter of the
Indonesian Forum for the Environment, Teguh, said deforestation
in the area was caused by unchecked illegal logging.
"We have campaigned against illegal logging in the Rimbo Panti
forest, including sending letters to government and security
officials. But the practice continues," he said.
He voiced suspicion that the illegal loggers were being backed
by security and government officials.
Rimbo Panti was declared a protected forest on June 8, 1932.
Besides being home to protected plants, the forest also is
populated by rare animals such as the Sumatran tiger.
East Pasaman Regent Baharuddin denied the regency
administration or security personnel were involved in illegal
logging, claiming that they were in fact waging an intense battle
against illegal loggers.
"There was indeed illegal logging in the forest, but we have
taken stern measures against those illegal loggers. We
confiscated the illegal logs they stole from the forest and we
forced them to pay compensation to the local community," he said.
Separately, the victims of the landslide and their families
may not receive insurance payments in compensation for their pain
and suffering.
Bedri Kasman, an official at the West Sumatra office of state
insurance company PT Jasa Rahardja, said it was still uncertain
whether the victims would be compensated.
"We are still waiting for the final police report on the case.
We are also waiting for a response from our head office in
Jakarta, whether the victims will receive compensation. This type
of accident is unusual," he said.
Part of the fares that all bus passengers pay goes
to PT Jasa Rahardja, entitling passengers to compensation from
the insurance company when they are involved in an accident.