A devastating train collision near the Indonesian capital Jakarta has claimed 14 lives and left 84 others injured, according to the train operator. Rescue teams continued their efforts to extract survivors still trapped in the wreckage on Tuesday.
The accident occurred late on Monday in Bekasi, a city just outside Jakarta, when a long-distance train collided with a stationary commuter train. Bobby Rasyidi, chief executive of Indonesia's state railway firm PT KAI, confirmed the rising death toll and ongoing evacuation operations.
Mohammad Syafii, head of Indonesia's search and rescue agency, described the delicate process of rescuing survivors from the mangled carriages during a press conference early Tuesday. He stated that personnel with specialized skills were required to perform measured extrications. Some victims remained alive but were pinned by train materials, he added.
One survivor, Sausan Sarifah, 29, recounted the terrifying moments after the impact. She was on her way home from work when her train stopped at Bekasi Timur station, about 25 kilometers from Jakarta. The collision happened so fast, she said, with a loud locomotive sound and no time to escape. Passengers were piled on top of each other, and she feared suffocating. She was fortunate to be on top and evacuated quickly, but she worried about those underneath.
According to Franoto Wibowo, a spokesperson for rail operator KAI, a taxi appeared to have clipped the commuter train at a level crossing, causing it to halt on the tracks where it was struck. Chaotic scenes unfolded at the station as rescue workers shouted for oxygen tanks and ambulances lined up with flashing lights.
An AFP reporter at the scene observed people being carried out on gurneys and loaded into ambulances, while hundreds of bystanders watched, some in shock. Indonesian deputy house speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad warned that the death toll could rise further as rescuers worked to free more trapped individuals. The military, fire brigade, national search and rescue agency, and Red Cross were all assisting in the evacuation effort, Franoto told Kompas TV.
Jakarta's police chief, Asep Edi Suheri, revealed that the long-distance train had crashed into the women-only carriage at the rear of the commuter train. All victims were on the commuter train, while all approximately 240 passengers on the other train were evacuated safely, according to Purba. The Jakarta search and rescue agency confirmed that rescuers were using extrication equipment to free trapped victims from the wrecked train structures, which had sustained significant damage.
Eva Chairista, 39, rushed to RSUD hospital after hearing her sister-in-law, Fira, 27, had been injured. She described a frenetic scene of medical triage, with doctors asking for patience as many patients were in worse condition. The last major train crash in Indonesia, which occurred in West Java province in January 2024, killed four crew members and injured about two dozen people.
