Nine killed in traffic accident

Nine killed in traffic accident

PURBALINGGA, Central Java: At least nine people were killed and dozens of others were injured when a public transportation minibus hit a tree on the main Bukateja road here at 9 p.m. on Wednesday.

The minibus was loaded with 40 passengers, some of them sitting on the roof and others hanging onto the rear end when it hit the tree.

Two people died at the scene and seven others died on the way to hospital. The injured are now being treated in Margono hospital in Purwokerto.

The police speculated that the accident was probably due to overloading so that the driver lost control of the vehicle. Normally, the number of passengers would only be 12 people.

Survivors said that after hitting the tree, the passengers who were sitting on the roof were thrown into an adjacent river. The people inside the minibus were trapped.

Purbalingga Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Agus Sofyan Abadi said there was no immediate explanation for the accident. "Possibly, the vehicle went out of control or the driver fell asleep," he said, adding that there was no sign of skidmarks.

The severe damage to the minivan showed that it was traveling at high speed, he added. --Antara