Six killed, 37 others injured in bus inferno

Six killed, 37 others injured in bus inferno

TANGERANG (JP): Six people, including a child, died of serious
burns and 37 others were injured when their overloaded bus turned
over and exploded on the Merak-Jakarta highway early yesterday
morning.

"All six bodies were completely roasted with expressions on
their faces as if they were screaming for help," exclaimed a
traffic policeman, who said the police and medical examiners were
having trouble identifying the names and genders of the victims.

The corpses are being kept at the Tangerang public hospital
morgue until their relatives are notified.

City police spokesman Lt. Col. Iman Haryatna said that the
driver of the bus, from the Bahagia transportation firm, was
among the dead.

Five of the injured, all badly burned and one who lost his
hands, are in critical condition and being treated at the state-
owned Serang hospital in Serang and the privately-owned Qadr
hospital in Karawaci.

Police said that the accident took place at 5:15 a.m. near the
Cikande village of Cisoka, 46 kilometers from the Kebun Jeruk
tollgate.

Several survivors told The Jakarta Post at Qadr hospital that
the bus, heading from Merak to Cirebon in West Java, was
overloaded with passengers from Lampung in Sumatra.

"I saw five passengers crowded into the extra seat next to the
driver," said 35-year-old Sofyan.

The passengers said that the accident happened when the bus
driver lost control while trying to pass a truck.

"The driver was overtaking a truck on his left. But there was
a broken truck in front of our bus which forced the driver to
quickly move back to the right lane," said Shaleh Bajuri, 30.

The bus crashed into the median, into the left lane and
flipped, Shaleh said.

Housewife Soleha, 29, said: "When the bus turned over, I
couldn't see my husband. Then I took my son and asked a man, who
broke the window, to pull us out from the bus."

"There was no fire at that moment but the broken window cut me
all over my body," she told the Post.

Her five-year-old son Adjiansyah was slightly wounded on his
head. "But I don't know where my husband, Suranto, is," she said.

From the preliminary investigation, police say that the bus
caught fire due to a short circuit in its battery.

"We're still investigating the cause," said spokesman Iman.

Police said that executives of PT Marga Mandala Sakti,
operator of the highway, have pledged to cover all medical
expenses for the injured victims.

Almost all of the victims said they had no chance to save
their belongings.

"All I have left are these torn trousers and shirts," Sofyan
said. "I couldn't find my bag under my seat because it was
totally dark and I also had to think about my life."

It is not yet clear if the bus company or its insurance firm
is prepared to compensate the victims.

The identities of the five seriously injured are Elisabeth,
17, Kuncoro, 16, Desnani, 51, Maralis, 30, and Muksin, 25.
(bsr/18)