Train hits car, killing one

Train hits car, killing one

The Jakarta Post, Brebes, Central Java

One person was killed and two others injured when a cargo train
hit a Daihatsu jeep in Brebes regency, Central Java, on Tuesday
morning.

All of the victims were passengers of the jeep, which was
pushed 50 meters from the scene of collision near the village of
Pebatan in Warnasari subdistrict.

The deceased was identified as Mulyana, 40, the jeep's driver.
He was a resident of Sumedang regency in West Java. The injured
were identified as Dadan, 32, and Nasir, 35, also from Sumedang.
They are being treated at the Bhakti Asih Hospital in Brebes.

Eyewitnesses said the crash occurred at 9 a.m. when the
Daihatsu attempted to pass through a railroad crossing unequipped
with a crossing gate. The train, traveling from the east to
Jakarta, crashed into the vehicle.

"The collision could not be avoided and the car was pushed
up to 50 meters away. The crash was really loud, prompting
villagers to rush to the scene," said Endang Supriatna, who
witnessed the incident.

Endang said it took hours for residents to drag the victims
out of the crushed vehicle.

The accident did not disrupt rail service.

"Everything is running smoothly. Even the train involved in
the accident was able to continue its trip," Suhartono, spokesman
for state-owned railway company PT Kereta Api Indonesia, told The
Jakarta Post in the West Java city of Cirebon.

This was not the first time a train has collided with a
vehicle along Java's north coast.

There also have been at least six incidents over the past two
months of trains jumping the tracks in the area between Karawang
in West Java and Brebes.

Meanwhile, police expressed concern on Tuesday over an
increase in the number of fatal traffic accidents along the north
coast of Java, which they said claimed about 9,000 lives a year.

Most of the crashes are the result of driver error, Comr. Gen.
Adang Darajatun was quoted by Antara as saying.