Police almost complete probe into cause of blast
Police almost complete probe into cause of blast
JAKARTA (JP): The National Police has almost completed its
examination on the cause of Wednesday's explosion at the Research
Center for Technology of Reactor Salvation of the National Atomic
Energy Agency (BATAN) in Serpong.
"Fifty percent of the work has been completed. The final
conclusion is scheduled to be announced on Monday (today)," a
team member of the Forensic Laboratory which conducted the
examination said over the weekend.
The officer, who asked not to be identified, said the team
examined a wide range of objects, such as filings and fractures
of some of the materials, to determine the cause of the accident.
The BATAN research center, along with other related
institutions, is located at the Science and Technology Research
Center (Puspitek) complex in Serpong, an area 30 kilometers
southwest of Jakarta.
The blast at the BATAN research center on Wednesday afternoon
killed a staff member and injured a cleaning service worker.
A spokesman for the National Police, Capt. Suyatmo, refused to
comment, saying that the forensic laboratory examination of the
case is still underway, while the investigation of the accident,
including the questioning of several witnesses, is concurrently
being carried out by the city police personnel.
"We hope that the final result from the police forensic
laboratory can be announced soon," he told reporters over the
weekend.
Based on the investigation, the police have yet to deduce the
cause of the blast -- a pure accident, or sabotage aimed at
foiling the government's plan to establish the first nuclear
power plant in order to meet the increasing demands of
electricity. The nuclear power plant is to be built in Muria
peninsular, Central Java.
BATAN's Director General Djali Ahimsa told reporters on Friday
that the accident caused no radiation leaks.
BATAN is a state-owned agency which administers the nuclear
laboratory along with its 30 megawatt research reactor, provided
by Siemens AG of Germany.
The explosion took place at around 1:30 p.m. during the lunch-
break hours. The single deceased, identified as Waluyo, 39, was
believed to have been taking a nap when the blast happened, while
the cleaning service employee, Supriyanto, 26, was painting a
wall.
Waluyo suffered a serious wound to the head and died on the
way to the hospital.
The Indonesian Environmental Forum (Walhi), a non-governmental
organization, demanded that the government thoroughly inspect the
extent of the damage and determine whether the blast caused
radiation leaks.
Emmy Hafidz, a spokesperson for Walhi, told The Jakarta Post
that the government should announce the results of the
investigation on the cause of the explosion because the public
has the right to know. (bsr)