18 dead in overloaded truck crash in Indonesia's West Papua
ABC News
An overloaded truck carrying 29 people hit a hillside and overturned near an illegal gold mine in Indonesia’s West Papua province on Wednesday
JAKARTA, Indonesia -- An overloaded truck carrying 29 people hit a hillside and overturned near an illegal gold mine in Indonesia’s West Papua province on Wednesday, killing 18 people and leaving others injured, police said.
The truck, crammed with miners and their families, was headed to the capital of West Papua province Manokwari to celebrate Easter. They were on their way from a mining area in Minyambou village of Arfak Mountain district when it hit the mountain and flipped over before dawn, said local police chief Parisian Herman Gultom.
Survivors said the truck’s engine apparently lost power while going up a hill. It rolled backward before crashing, killing 13 people instantly, including a child and the driver. The other 16 were taken to two hospitals, some in critical condition, and five died while in treatment.
Television reports showed rescuers from the local search and rescue agency using their bare hands to search for the victims and struggling to bring out black body bags in half-vertical terrain.
