Published: 13:09, January 5, 2024 | Updated: 17:03, January 5, 2024
Commuter train collision in Indonesia kills three, injures 28
By Xinhua

People stand at the site of a train collision between the local Bandung Raya train and the Turangga train in Cicalengka, Bandung, West Java province, Indonesia, Jan 5, 2024. (PHOTO / REUTERS)

JAKARTA — Rescuers in Indonesia were battling on Friday to extricate two people trapped between railway cars after commuter trains collided in the province of West Java, killing at least three and injuring 28, authorities said.

Video images from broadcasters MetroTV and Kompas TV showed passengers being helped out of train carriages, some of which had gone off the rails entirely.

The cause of the crash not immediately clear, but train operator PT KAI and the provincial government have said they will investigate

Rescuers were weighing options to save the two people found squeezed between cars, said Herry Marantika, the head of a rescue agency, but declined to say if they were still alive.

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Ambulances gathered to take the injured to hospital, police said, following the collision at 6:03 am (1103 GMT) near the provincial capital of Bandung.

The three dead were train crew, said Ibrahim Tompo, a regional spokesperson of West Java police, adding that a total of 478 passengers were aboard the trains, with the 28 injured taken to hospital.

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Passengers are evacuated after a train collision between the local Bandung Raya train and the Turangga train in Cicalengka, Bandung, West Java province, Indonesia, Jan 5, 2024. (PHOTO / REUTERS)

Locals watch the site of a train collision between the local Bandung Raya train and the Turangga train in Cicalengka, Bandung, West Java province, Indonesia, Jan 5, 2024. (PHOTO / REUTERS)

The cause of the crash not immediately clear, but train operator PT KAI and the provincial government have said they will investigate, along with transport safety officials.