Jakarta, CNNI Indonesia —
A Daihatsu minibus fell overboard as it was about to board the Shalem ferry at pier 2 Merak harbour, BantenFriday (24/12) evening.
According to Banten Police Public Relations Chief Kombes Shinto Silitonga, the incident happened around 10pm WIB. He said that according to the initial investigation the accident occurred due to the negligence of the Shalem Ferry keeper.
“At that moment the vehicle was about to enter the ferry, but the door that became the bridge for the car to enter the ship collapsed. There was negligence by the guard at the ship’s door,” Silitonga said to reporters at pier 2. of the port of Merak.
He said that when the car was about to board the Shalem ferry, the rope on the vessel widened so that the side brakes were no longer attached to the vessel.
“At that moment the vehicle was about to enter the ferry, but the door that became the bridge for the car to enter the ship fell off. There was negligence by the ship’s door brake guard,” he said. called Shinto Silitonga.
A member of the Banten Ditpolairud regional police, Hasanudin, said his group and Basarnas immediately went to the TKP when they heard the information about the incident.
“So at first we received reports from our ship or from Postspam. After we got the information, we immediately moved to TKP with other security guards and Basarnas members,” Hasanudin told reporters.
A husband and wife who were passengers in the car also fell overboard and were trapped in the car. Four police officers and two agents from Basarnas immediately carried out the rescue operations.
Hasanudin said he and his colleagues immediately dived into the sea when they arrived at the TKP and saw the location of the car still floating on the surface.
“So, after arriving at the TKP, we saw that a car had crashed into the sea. When we saw conditions with fairly fast currents, so our human reflexes, spontaneously, we immediately took to the sea to help the victims.” she said.
The rescue team brought equipment such as life jacket, lifesaver, and rope. In addition, the team waiting on the ground also provided stretchers.
Hasanudin explained that this rescue had several obstacles, one of which was the strong current.
“During our evacuation, we were actually constrained by the weather, meaning the current was pretty fast and the victim’s cargo was very fat, so the victim’s body was very fat,” he said, explaining the obstacles during the rescue.
Another Ditpolairud officer named A. Waris said the victim could open the door with the help of his team, so there was no need to break the glass to get the victims out of the car.
“The glass wasn’t broken, only he could open the door because he was so panicked that he could try to open the door. And then we were greeted by us to help open the door,” she explained.
(lom/rds)
