Numerous Killed, Injured In Indonesia Train Collision

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent

JAKARTA (Worthy News) – At least 14 people were killed and dozens injured after two trains collided near Indonesia’s capital Jakarta, officials said Tuesday, in one of the country’s deadliest rail accidents in recent years.

The overnight crash occurred near Bekasi Timur Station after trains in the area were ordered to stop when a taxi became stuck on a railroad crossing, authorities said.

A commuter train first struck the taxi, but no casualties were reported in that initial incident.

Shortly afterward, however, an intercity train carrying about 240 passengers failed to stop completely and slammed into a stationary commuter train at the station, said Franoto Wibowo, a spokesman of the state-owned railway company, PT Kereta Api Indonesia.

“I often use the train that crashed, but not today,” said church worker Victoria in an interview with Worthy News. “I think the crash also happened because the authorities don’t provide enough secure crossings. I think it’s an example of bad infrastructure and coordination,” she said.

CRASH DETAILS

“I think the victims are mainly women because the women’s carriage was hardest hit in the collision,” she added.

The vice president for corporate communications of PT Kereta Api Indonesia issued an apology to customers.

“At this time, all efforts are focused on evacuating passengers and crew, as well as assisting victims at the scene, with safety as the top priority,” Anne Purba said in a statement.

Purba said commuter rail service in the area was disrupted.

The collision injured at least 84 other people, according to the rescue agency. Footage from Monday night obtained by Worthy News showed the front of the first commuter train pressed against the side of a taxi on the track. Images from the station showed rescue workers carrying injured people out of damaged cars of the second commuter train, passing stretchers through the windows, with shocked witnesses watching nearby.

RESCUE AND RESPONSE

Rescue teams worked through the night searching for survivors in the wreckage, said Mohammad Syafii, head of the agency, adding that several people were freed.

Accidents are common on Indonesia’s aging railroad network. In January 2024, two trains collided in West Java province, killing at least four people.

In October 2013, a passenger train slammed into a minibus at an unguarded crossing in West Java, killing 13 people.

In 2010, a train from Jakarta plowed into the rear of another train that was sitting at a station in Central Java province, killing 36 people.

The intercity train involved in the latest crash had been traveling from Jakarta to Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-largest city on the island of Java.

PAST ACCIDENTS

Rail services near Jakarta remained disrupted Tuesday as authorities investigated the cause of the crash.

Indonesia’s rail system is primarily operated by PT Kereta Api Indonesia, though some urban transit lines involve public-private partnerships.

Authorities said an investigation into the latest crash is ongoing, as questions mount over whether human error, technical failure, or broader infrastructure weaknesses played a role in yet another disaster in this nation of more than 270 million people.

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