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Indonesian Train Collides With Fuel Truck


A train burns after crashing in Jakarta, Dec. 9, 2013. (Andy Lala Waluyo for VOA)
A train burns after crashing in Jakarta, Dec. 9, 2013. (Andy Lala Waluyo for VOA)
Six people were killed and dozens more injured when a crowded Indonesian commuter train hit a fuel truck Monday in Jakarta.

A train passenger named Pandu says Indonesian service the train's first passenger car, which was for women only, took the brunt of the impact.

"The train hit the fuel tanker, causing the head of the train and the first [female-only] carriage to overturn and burst into flames,". "I was in the seventh or eighth carriage. The passengers forced open the door and got off."

People watch a train burn after crashing in Jakarta, Dec. 9, 2013. (Andy Lala Waluyo for VOA)
People watch a train burn after crashing in Jakarta, Dec. 9, 2013. (Andy Lala Waluyo for VOA)
Transportation Ministry Spokesman Bambang Ervan says a team has been sent to the scene to start an investigation.

"Based on the preliminary investigation, we assumed the tanker crossed the railway when it was supposed to stop," he sad. "The railway crossing gate functioned well and has been there forever."

The accident is near the location of a 1987 collision of two trains that left 156 people dead.

This report was produced in collaboration with VOA Indonesian Service
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