At least 14 killed in Indonesia train collision, some survivors still trapped in wreckage

At least 14 people have died in an Indonesia train collision, according to Indonesia’s state railway operator, Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI).

84 people were injured, and rescuers are still working to free survivors trapped in the wreckage.

The crash took place late on Apr. 27 when a commuter train and a long-distance train collided near Bekasi, just outside Jakarta.

Rescuers working to free passengers

According to Reuters, Indonesia’s national search and rescue agency said efforts to reach survivors trapped inside the crushed train carriages are complex and ongoing.

“We needed to involve personnel with certain skills to perform a measured extrication,” said agency chief Mohammad Syafii at a press conference.

“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.”

Emergency crews were seen cutting through twisted metal using angle grinders to reach passengers trapped inside the compartments.

Syafii also said the confined working space and severe damage to the train cars slowed rescue operations, Al Jazeera reported.

Women-only carriage hit hardest

A spokesperson for the rail operator told The Guardian that a taxi may have clipped the commuter train at a level crossing, causing it to stop on the tracks.

The train was subsequently struck by an oncoming long-distance train.

Asep Edi Suheri, Jakarta’s police chief, said the long-distance train crashed into the last carriage of the commuter train, which was designated for women passengers.

About 240 passengers on the long-distance train were evacuated in the aftermath.

“I thought I was going to die”

One survivor described the moment the long-distance train slammed into the stationary commuter train she was travelling on.

“I thought I was going to die,” said 29-year-old Sausan Sarifah from her hospital bed, according to The Guardian.

She said passengers had been preparing to disembark before the collision occurred.

“It all happened so fast, in a split second,” she said.

“There was no time to get out, and everyone ended up piled up inside the train, crushed on top of one another.”

Sarifah added that she feared suffocating while trapped in the carriage.

“Thank God I was on top, so I could be evacuated quickly,” she said.

Footage of the scene after the crash showed rescue workers calling for oxygen tanks, while ambulances queued nearby with their lights flashing.

Officials said the toll could continue to rise as search efforts continue.