Surakarta bus-train collision kills 12

JAKARTA (JP): Twelve people were killed and 10 critically injured when their bus was hit by a train near Surakarta (Solo), Central Java, on Tuesday afternoon.

A Kerjasama bus was hit by the Purbaya train at a railway crossing in Karanganyar, while the guard in charge of the crossing gate was in the toilet.

Those injured were still in intensive care at the Dr. Oen Hospital yesterday, Antara reported.

Three of the bodies have yet to be identified.

Witnesses said the bus driver seemed to be oblivious of the Jakarta-bound train that passed the crossing at a high speed.

The bus was flung into the air before hitting a telephone pole and landing on its roof about 11 meters from the impact point, eyewitnesses said.

One of the survivors is a 2.5 year-old child, who is yet to be identified.

Railway authorities in Surakarta closed the track for three hours after the accident.

Chief of the Karanganyar police precinct Lt. Col. Karsin said the negligence of the crossing guard, 41-year-old Suratno, probably caused the accident.

He said the police would question the guard and witnesses to determine the cause of the accident. (pan)