Truck Carrying Gallon Bottles of Mineral Water Overturns in Bekasi, Crashing into a Warung and Causing Severe Damage

A heavy truck carrying mineral water gallon bottles overturned on Jalan Swatantra, Bekasi City, West Java. The truck struck a warung (small shop) and a neighbouring ruko (shop-house), causing extensive damage. The incident occurred at around 05:00 WIB this morning. The warung owner, Nanda (19), said the truck initially travelled along a lane that was under repair. ‘I saw the truck tipping over. I thought it would just skim by, but suddenly it all toppled onto the front of my shop. I was shocked,’ he said. ‘(The truck) was fully loaded, about 900 gallons, all full,’ he added. According to Nanda, the truck tried to avoid a motorcycle traveling too close from the opposite direction. Unfortunately, the rear wheel sank into a collapsed drain that could not bear the weight. ‘The driver said a Beat or Vario motorcycle rode too close to him. He then moved a little to the left, and the wheel slipped into the drain. It toppled,’ he explained. Nanda said the accident damaged his warung; in addition to part of the building collapsing, shop equipment such as refrigerators and display cabinets were destroyed, crushed by the truck and its gallon load. ‘There were two refrigerators, one freezer, and all the display cases shattered. The gallons from the truck even bounced into the shop,’ he said. At the time, Nanda said he was inside the warung. Fortunately, he sustained only minor injuries. Another shop tenant, Zainal (50), said his building also sustained damage, notably to the canopy and rolling shutter. He added that the driver was unharmed but appeared shocked and fainted several times. ‘The driver is fine; no injuries. But he was very shocked, and he fainted twice,’ he noted. After the crash, police and the Department of Transportation (Dishub) arrived at the scene. Although traffic was briefly congested, the truck was evacuated around 10:00 WIB with the help of a crane.