TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Three people died and dozens injured during the Surabaya Membara mass-art performance on November 9, after a large crowd packing the active railway bridge viaduct were struck by a passing train.
The performance art is an annual event held at a public area involving hundreds of participants in commemorating the National Heroes Day on November 10.
Transportation Agency’s Directorate General of Railway Zulkifri maintained that the viaduct is not a spot meant for spectators to watch the performance art since it is an active railway.
“This is an accident that no one expects to experience. Moreover, the tragedy came in a time when the public was happily commemorating the 2018 National Heroes Day,” said Zulfikri on Saturday, Nov. 10.
According to the Surabaya Command Center, several people fell from the railway bridge that stood 4 to 5 meters above a public street used in the performance art. Reports and amateur video of the incident suggest that the people fell from the railway after they were knocked over by the moving train.
Zulfikri said that the amateur video of the incident saw the train blowing its horn prior to approaching the packed railway bridge under a lower-than-usual speed. He hopes that similar incidents will never recur in the future.
KARTIKA ANGGRAENI