15 Women Confirmed Dead in Train Crash, at Least 88 Other Passengers Injured
The accident occurred after a long-distance train crashed into the women-only car of a commuter train outside of Indonesia's capital
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Fifteen women have died with 88 others injured after a train crash in Indonesia
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The incident occurred on the evening of Monday, April 27 after a long-distance train crashed into a stopped commuter train at Bekasi Timur Station
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Officials believe the incident began when another train hit a stalled taxi near the station, leading staff to stop the second commuter train
Over a dozen women are confirmed dead following a train crash in Indonesia. At least 88 others were injured in the accident.
A long-distance train struck the rear car of a stopped commuter train at Bekasi Timur Station, near the capital of Jakarta, on the evening of Monday, April 27. The rear car of the train was reserved for women, and all the casualties were female.
After rescuers recovered the victims, Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, Indonesia's senior minister for infrastructure, said that the death toll had risen to 15, per Reuters .
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Yudhoyono explained that most of the victims had been pinned inside the carriage by crushed metal.
Per the Associated Press , officials confirmed that all 240 passengers on the long-distance train were safe.
According to local newspaper The Jakarta Post , Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto visited survivors at Bekasi Regional Hospital and ordered a full investigation into the deadly incident.
Credit: B. Nugraha/Xinhua via Getty
He added, per the outlet, that the government will look at the safety of railway crossings, many of which remain unprotected, and announced that he approved the "immediate construction" of flying junctions to reduce the risk of similar incidents in the future.
Asep Edi Suheri, the Jakarta police chief, confirmed an ongoing investigation into the cause of the accident, the AP reported.
Additionally, Bobby Rasyidin, the CEO of railway company Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI), told the agency that the National Transportation Safety Committee would be looking into the cause.
Credit: Agoes Rudianto/Anadolu via Getty
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According to a statement from the Indonesian Ministry of Transportation, officials believe the incident began when another commuter train hit a stalled taxi near the station, the AP reported. Station staff then stopped the second commuter train, which led to the long-distance train crashing into it, the department said.
PEOPLE has reached out to Kereta Api Indonesia, the Indonesian National Police and the National Transportation Safety Committee for further updates.
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