Train driver dies of electrocution

Train driver dies of electrocution

JAKARTA: A train driver, Johanes, was electrocuted while
clearing away tree branches blocking the track on an electrified
rail line on Tuesday afternoon. He died on the way to the
hospital.

"Johanes was trying to clear fallen branches from the high
voltage rail line between Tanah Abang and Manggarai railway
station," spokesman for the state railway company PT KAI's
Jakarta branch, Ahmad Sujadi, was quoted as saying by the
Detikcom news portal.

The railway line was littered with branches downed by the
heavy rain on Tuesday.

Unfortunately, the victim forgot to cut the current before
clearing away the branches, and due to the wet conditions the
current jumped from the train to the track where the driver was
working.

Following the incident, PT KAI urged the Jakarta Parks Agency to cut
back large trees along the railway line to prevent a similar
incident from happening in the future. -- JP