Pregnant woman dies in six-car pileup

Pregnant woman dies in six-car pileup

JAKARTA (JP): A pregnant woman was killed after being hit by a
petrol tanker in a chain collision on Jl. Raya Lapangan Tembak,
Cibubur, East Jakarta yesterday.

Chief Sgt. Yudhitama, from the Kebon Nanas traffic police
station, said that Marlina, 27, a resident of Gg. Buni, Munjul,
East Jakarta, was the only fatality.

Yudhitama said other people were injured in the six-car
pileup, including many passengers in minivans and a public
minibus. He declined to give details on the number of people
injured.

The officer said Marlina, who was carrying her three-year-old
daughter Evi, was standing on the sidewalk at 9 a.m. and
preparing to cross the road to Cibubur market.

But the petrol tanker, heading for Cawang, was traveling at
high speed and unable to stop due to faulty brakes, he said.

Muhammad, 46, the driver of the tanker, allegedly admitted
that he was trying to avoid another car when he steered to the
left side of the road.

Marlina, who was five-months pregnant, had just stepped down
from the sidewalk when the tanker hit her. Marlina and her baby
were killed instantly but she managed to throw her daughter
aside, saving the toddler's life.

The other five vehicles -- a truck transporting pebbles, a
sedan, a minibus and two minivans -- crashed in a chain collision
as the drivers had no time to brake.

All the vehicles involved were heading from Cibubur to Cawang.

Muhammad was taken to Ciracas police sub-precinct for
questioning while Marlina's body was taken to Cipto Mangunkusumo
hospital for a post-mortem examination. (04)