Ten people die in minivan crash
PURWOKERTO, Central Java (JP): The holiday season exodus was marred on New Year's eve when 10 people burned to death in a collision 17 kilometers west of here.
The crash occurred at about 3:20 p.m. in Ciberung village on Jl. Ajibarang KM. 17-18 in Banyumas regency.
The 10 victims were all passengers in minivan B 7419 XL, which caught fire after being hit by a Sinar Jaya bus.
The minivan was bound to Jakarta from Purbalingga.
The bus was traveling at about 80 kilometers per hour from the opposite direction at the time of the incident, Banyumas Regional Police Chief Sr. Supt. Carel Risakotta said.
The driver and attendant of the Sinar Jaya bus are still at large.
"We are doing our best to locate the bus driver. Fortunately, the bus was not carrying passengers," the officer said.
The dead were identified as Jumadi Siswodihardjo, the driver of the minivan Sukaryadi and his wife Munjiah, Munjiah's 1.5-year-old daughter named Dewi, two students named Azis, 10, and Yunus, 7; Subandi, Subandi's wife Jujuk and their 3-year-old daughter Riska and Jumadi's daughter Dwi Kurniawati, 18. Dwi was an economics student at Purwokerto-based Jendral Soedirman University.
On Monday, Jumadi and Dwi were buried in Purworejo while the remaining eight were laid to rest in Purbalingga.
Police said the collision occurred after the bus driver apparently lost control of the vehicle. The bus swerved to the right and left and crashed into several vehicles, including the minivan.
The minivan caught fire and hit a Kijang van in front of it, which crashed into another Kijang van and a sedan. The bus and the Kijang van in front of the minivan also caught fire and were completely destroyed.
Traffic jam
In Bandung, the capital of West Java, traffic was reportedly crowded on the southern Java route on Monday as many travelers were trying to avoid the usually congested northern road, West Java City police Insp. Gen. Yun Mulyana said during a visit to monitor the return travelers on Monday.
He said many travelers used the southern roads not only to avoid the congestion, but also to enjoy the beautiful views along the route.
The officer said his office recorded 30 traffic accidents since Dec. 18, leaving 25 people dead and some 90 others injured, Antara news agency said.
The figure represented a slight decrease from 1999, when there were 32 accidents, killing 52 and injuring 146.
In Surakarta, Central Java, an official with Tirtonadi bus terminal, Soepriyono, said on Monday that his office had provided 14 additional busses to anticipate increased holiday travelers bound for Semarang, Tegal and Purwokerto.
Official data showed that 2,713 busses, carrying 85,119 passengers left the terminal on Monday. There were 2,520 incoming buses carrying 86,181 passengers.
Similar increases were also observed in Surabaya's Purabaya bus terminal, in Bungurasih area with some 85,300 passengers, returning to Surabaya on Sunday compared to some 36,000 passengers last Friday.
An officer with the Purabaya bus terminal, Radianto, predicted that the number of returning passengers would peak on Monday.
Returning passengers at Merak port, Serang, Banten province, during New Year's Eve were relatively constant, Widodo, a port official, said.
There was no large increase in travelers at Merak port. However, he predicted that a peak would occur in the next two days as most institutions would resume activities on Thursday.
In Semarang, the capital of Central Java, an official with the provincial office of the Ministry of Communication Jauhari Parangenangen said there were 1,440,880 passengers at the Terboyo bus terminal this Idul Fitri, an 18 percent increase above the 1,220,454 passengers in 1999.
Similar increases in the number of returning passengers was also reported outside Java. (45/edt/lup)