Jakarta – Two people died after a truck loaded with stones lost control as a result of brake failure while negotiating a downhill curve in Banjarsari village, Selorejo district, Blitar regency, East Java, on Monday.
The truck was carrying stones as well as five people in its cabin and fell into a 20-meter deep ravine. The two fatalities were identified only as MRF and HG.
Blitar Police Traffic Law Enforcement Unit chief Second Insp. Juli Hartanto said the victims had been evacuated to the Wava Husada Kesamben Hospital for further treatment.
Meanwhile, Blitar Police chief spokesman Second Insp. Putut Siswahyudi said the single-vehicle accident occurred due to brake failure while the truck was negotiating a downhill curve.
"The brakes failed, causing the truck to lose control on the downhill curve," Putut told reporters on Monday evening, as reported by kompas.com.
The police were notified of the incident at 9:30 a.m. Putut said the process of recovering the truck took a significant amount of time due to the depth of the ravine.
After six hours of evacuation efforts starting at 10 a.m., Putut said that operations were halted in the afternoon because of heavy rain at the location.
"Only the cabin of the truck was successfully lifted. The chassis and cargo bed are still at the bottom of the ravine, and plans for further evacuation will continue tomorrow [Tuesday]," he said.
Based on information gathered by police, after falling into the ravine, the truck overturned several times on the slope before finally crashing to the bottom of the ravine, which is a riverbed.
"The truck is in an overturned position at the bottom of the river," Putut noted.
He called on drivers of heavy vehicles to always check the condition of brakes and other important components before traveling, especially on routes with challenging conditions, such as the road in Banjarsari village.
"Brake failure is the main cause of accidents on this downhill curve," Putut said.