Dozens Dead In Indonesia Train Crash

Two trains crowded with holiday travelers collided on the Indonesian island of Java Tuesday, killing at least 27 people, authorities said. Media reports said more than 40 were killed.

The early morning crash occurred in the town of Brebes in central Java, about 65 miles east of Jakarta. The two trains — one traveling east toward the city of Yogjakarta and the other headed west to the capital — rammed into each other in the town's railway station.

"Twenty-seven people died and were brought to this hospital by ambulance and trucks," said Nur Aena, a nurse at the local hospital in Brebes. "We are not able to handle this and will ask Cirebon general hospital to help."

Cirebon is a port city about 10 miles away.

Police first said at least 16 people died. Jakarta's Metro TV news channel put the death toll at more than 40.

Additional search and rescue teams, accompanied by minister of Transportation Agum Gumelar, were being flown in by helicopter, said a report on Jakarta's El Shinta radio.

This is Indonesia's busiest travel time, as people gather in their home towns and villages for both the Muslim and Christian holidays.

Indonesia has had a number of fatal train crashes recently. Officials have blamed signal failures for most of the accidents. With the economic crisis forcing the government to slash the transport budget, trains are often poorly maintained and overcrowded with people riding on the roofs and hanging out of doors.

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