Jakarta, April 28 (IANS) The death toll from a collision between two trains in Bekasi, West Java, Indonesia, has risen to 14, with 84 people injured, local officials said on Tuesday.
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto visited the victims at a hospital in Bekasi on Tuesday morning, saying that he extended condolences on behalf of the government and himself, and promising a quick investigation into the tragic event. President Prabowo Subianto said he had agreed to build a flyover near the train tracks to help resolve heavy traffic congestion, adding that authorities would investigate the collision. He said large parts of the train network are not well-maintained.
In an official statement on Tuesday, train operator KAI President Director Bobby Rasyidin said, “The latest data as of 8:45 a.m. Western Indonesian Time (WIB) shows 14 deaths. The deceased has been taken to the Kramat Jati Police Hospital for further identification. Meanwhile, 84 injured victims have received medical treatment at various health facilities.”
A commuter train on the Jakarta-Bekasi route was involved in a collision with a long-distance train operating on the Jakarta-Surabaya route at around 8:50 p.m. local time on Monday.
An investigation into the cause of the incident is being conducted by the rail operator and the National Transportation Safety Committee, Xinhua news agency reported.
Mohammad Syafii, the head of Indonesia’s search and rescue agency, told a press conference early on Tuesday that it was a delicate process to rescue survivors from the mangled carriages.
“We needed to involve personnel with certain skills to perform a measured extrication,” he said. “There are some victims who are alive to this minute and we’re hoping to extricate them, but they’re still pinned by the train material.”
Land transport accidents are common in Indonesia. A train collision in West Java province in 2024 killed four people and injured dozens.
–IANS
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