Jakarta train collision death toll rises to 7, probe underway: Rescuers say 'some victims alive under the wreckage'

The death toll from a train collision in Indonesian capital Jakarta has risen to seven with another 81 injured, a railway ​official said on Tuesday (Apr 28). The collision happened when a stationary commuter train was hit by a long-distance train in Bekasi, just outside Jakarta. Jakarta police chief Asep Edi Suheri said that the long-distance train had crashed into the last, women-only, carriage of the commuter train. All the victims were in the commuter train, and all 240-odd passengers on the other train had been evacuated safely. The commuter train was reportedly stranded on the tracks after a taxi struck it at a level crossing. Indonesia's National Transportation Safety ⁠Committee (KNKT) has launched an ​investigation in the crash.

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"The collision caused "significant damage to several train carriages", the Jakarta search and rescue agency said in a statement, adding that several victims were reported to be trapped inside the carriages due to the force of the impact. Rescuers are still working to extract survivors ‌trapped in the wreckage. The videos of the accident on social media show the aftermath of the crash, with injured passengers and victims lying near the wreckage. 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 get survivors out of the mangled carriages. “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,” he added.

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Transport accidents in Indonesia

The most recent major train accident in the Southeast Asian country occurred in January 2024 in West Java province, where a collision resulted in the deaths of four crew members and left around two dozen passengers injured. The incident raised renewed concerns about railway safety and infrastructure in the region. Earlier, in 2015, a tragic accident in the capital city of Jakarta claimed 16 lives when a commuter train struck a minibus at a level crossing. That accident highlighted ongoing risks at railway crossings, particularly those without adequate safety barriers or warning systems, prompting calls for stricter safety measures.