3 die, and more than a dozen injured in bridge collapse

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Sat, 11/26/2011 7:14 PM


At least three people died and more than a dozen others were injured when Mahakam II Bridge, connecting Tenggarong and Tenggarong Seberang districts in Kutai Kartanegara, East Kalimantan, collapsed.

“The East Kalimantan governor reported to the President that three people had died and 17 were injured,” State Secretary Sudi Silalahi told reporters Saturday as quoted by kompas.com.

National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) personnel and regional police officers have been deployed to the area to evacuate the victims.

National Police chief Timur Pradopo called on residents living nearby to resume their regular activities despite the incident.

The bridge, also known as Kutai Kertanegara Bridge, collapsed at around 4:30 p.m on Saturday. Many vehicles were reportedly driving across or stopping on the bridge when the accident occurred.

The 705-meter-long suspension was the longest bridge in Kalimantan.

The bridge's construction was completed in 1999.

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Sun, 11/27/2011 9:58 AM


Public Works Minister Djoko Kirmanto said that the collapse of the Tenggarong bridge in Kutai Kartanegara, East Kalimantan, was unusual for such a relatively new bridge.

“It is rare that a bridge aged only 10 years can collapse,” Djoko said to reporters in Tenggarong on Sunday, as quoted by kompas.com.

Djoko, along with the Coordinating Peoples Welfare Minister Agung Laksono, arrived at the location at around 2 a.m. Sunday local time.

Djoko said that a team from his ministry’s research body was expected to investigate the cause of the collapse of the bridge that connected the cities of Samarinda and Kutai Kartanegara.

“This morning at around 6 a.m. local time our team will leave Jakarta and hopefully will be here by 10 a.m. local time,” he added.

Regency promises to pay for treatment of victims of bridge collapse

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Sun, 11/27/2011 12:16 PM


The Kutai Kartanegara administration in East Kalimantan says that it will bear all costs of medical treatment for the victims of the Tenggarong Bridge collapse.

“Yes, we will pay for it because this is a disaster,” regent Rita Widyasari said Sunday, as quoted by tempointeraktif.com, adding that she would also offer compensation to the victims.

Public Works Minister Djoko Kirmanto and Coordinating Minister for Peoples Welfare Minister Agung Laksono arrived at the location of the disaster at around 2 a.m. Sunday local time to observe the collapsed bridge.

Agung told reporters that he was not yet able to determine the cause of the disaster.

“The response to the disaster has been good, but further investigation is needed,” he said.

President to send ferry to mobilize Kutai bridge users

The Jakarta Post Sun, 11/27/2011 10:00 PM

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will send a ferry to help mobilize citizens that usually used the Kutai Kartanegara Bridge that collapsed on Saturday, Regent Rita Widyasari says.

“Pak SBY, through the Coordinating People’s Welfare Minister, will send a ferry. My administration will also prepare a port specifically for the transportation of students that usually used the Kutai Kartanegara Bridge,” she said Sunday, as quoted by tribunnews.com.

Meanwhile, sea transportation in the area would be temporarily halted because the National Search and Rescue Agency planned to recover the bridge’s wreckage that had sunk to the bottom of the river, Rita said.

“So for the moment, ponton [traditional wooden boats] are not allowed to pass because the [search and rescue] team is still evacuating victims and the ruins of the Kutai Kartanegara Bridge,” she said.

SAR finds remains of another 5 bridge victims

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Mon, 11/28/2011 9:59 AM


A search and rescue (SAR) team found the remains of five people on Monday morning up to 10 kilometers from the site of the collapsed Tenggarong Bridge.

The bridge, over the Mahakam River in Kutai Kartanegara regency, East Kalimantan, collapsed on Saturday afternoon.

The discovery of five bodies on Monday brought the death toll from the incident to 10, while dozens of others were also injured.

On Monday, national SAR agency head Daryatmo said in Tenggarong that strong currents in the Mahakam had washed the bodies up to 10 kilometers from the site of the incident.

“The furthest distance away from the site that we found bodies was 10 kilometers -- more precisely it was in Loa Kulu. We found all of them floating,” Daryatmo said, as quoted by tribunnews.com.

Kutai Kartanegara to build new bridge

The Jakarta Post Mon, 11/28/2011 9:41 PM


Kutai Kertanegara administration said on Monday that it would spend Rp 350 billion (US$38.5 million) to build a new bridge to replace the collapsed Kutai Kertanegara Bridge.

The new bridge will be built in Loa Kulu district, East Kalimantan, 12 kilometers from the collapsed bridge.

“We planned it a long time ago and will build it in 2012,” Kutai Kertanegara Regent Rita Widyasari said on Monday as quoted by tempo.co.

Rita said the administration did not plan to rebuild the collapsed bridge, adding that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had asked her not to build a bridge in the same location.

The 710-meter Kutai Kertanegara Bridge connecting Tenggarong and Tenggarong Seberang districts collapsed on Saturday afternoon, killing at least 12 people traveling on the bridge.

The cause of the collapse has not yet been announced.

Possible Corruption Suspected in Bridge Collapse


November 28, 2011

Authorities raised on Monday a possibility that many in the public had already suspected: that corruption played a part in the deadly collapse of the Mahakam II Bridge.

“We have sent corruption investigators to the site,” a source within the National Police told the Jakarta Globe on Monday. “We suspect there were irregularities in the case because the bridge was still new and was built with several funding sources, including the regional budget.”

The 700-meter-long bridge across the Mahakam River in Kutai Kartanegara, East Kalimantan, which opened in 2002, collapsed on Saturday, plunging cars into the water below.

As of Monday, 13 people had been confirmed dead, and all the victims had been identified. Police also reported that 37 people were injured and at least 30 were still missing.

Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputy chairman M. Jasin also signaled that his agency suspected dishonesty in the procurement of materials and the construction of the bridge.

“There are indications of [corruption]. It suggests the quality of the materials was insufficient or the technical specifications were not met,” he said.

The KPK will be unable to investigate the case, though, because it was established in 2002, a decade after the bridge construction began. “We are hamstrung by the KPK Law,” he said.

But Jasin still had some advice about where to start looking — commission an investigation by the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK).

“There must be an investigative audit, for example into the materials and construction services used in the bridge,” he said.
National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Saud Usman Nasution said police had already questioned 11 witnesses.

“The [police] team, in cooperation with the Public Works Ministry and the National Search and Rescue Agency, will question the construction team first,” he said.

Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) lawmaker Yudi Widiana Adia, a member of the House of Representatives commission overseeing infrastructure and transportation, said legislators would also look into the bridge collapse.

“We will send eight members of Commission V to directly review the incident and compile a report,” Yudi said, adding that the report would be discussed at a meeting with the Ministry for Public Works scheduled for Thursday.

In the meantime, Transportation Minister E.E. Mangindaan said the government had provided two more ferries to help ease river crossings.

“We are helping by providing two ferries while waiting for the jetty to be repaired. They’re on loan so that the public can continue to cross the river,” the minister said.

The accident is expected to affect businesses operating in the area. Erindra Krisnawan, an analyst at CIMB Securities, said Harum Energy, Indo Tambangraya and Bayan Resources were the companies most hurt by the Kutai Kertanegara bridge collapse.

Thamrin Sihite, director general of mining and coal at the Energy Ministry, played down the impact. “I don’t think the Mahakam river incident will affect coal delivery,” he said. “Should the companies be unable to use the river, they can use the road.”



(all this from the JG)

18 professional divers to recover remains of bridge victims

The Jakarta Post Tue, 11/29/2011 10:27 AM


A team of 18 professional divers, accompanied by Navy frogmen, and members of the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) and Mobile Police Brigade (Brimob), are set to attempt to recover the remains of victims of the collapsed Kutai Kertanegara Bridge in East Kalimantan on Tuesday.

National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) spokesperson Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said the professional divers worked for oil companies, and were used to working underwater for drilling for rigs off the coast of Balikpapan.

"The water is 50 meters deep,“ Sutopo said Tuesday in a statement sent to The Jakarta Post.

Sutopo added that the divers would cut steel to recover the remains of victims trapped in cars that sunk into the river during the incident.