Jember, E Java (Antaranews jatim) - A joint team of train inspectors along with the Indonesian Military (TNI) found cracks in rails around Jatiroto Station, Lumajang District, East Java Province, on Monday morning at around 2:45 p.m. local time.
"The joint task force of the railway and TNI officers while conducting patrol activities found damaged rails 200 meters from Jatiroto Station," Chief of Staff of the Raider 9 Infantry Brigade Army Strategic Command Lieutenant Colonel Infantry Rudianto remarked in Jember District.
According to Rudianto, the rail can be repaired in more than an hour's time due to the alertness of officers and the assistance of soldiers on the field that conducted patrolling: Pratu M. Muzahidin, Pratu Vinda Arga, security staff Rizki Setiawan, and track officer Untung Nugroho.
"Thank God, the cracked rail can be repaired quickly, so it will not hinder the train schedule in the Operation Area 9 of Jember," he stated.
He explained that the joint team's patrols were conducted regularly thrice a day to ensure that trains operate smoothly during the Lebaran 2018. Moreover, the joint team has also disseminated information to the public on the security of crossbar crossings.
Meanwhile, Public Relations Manager of PT Kereta Api Indonesia Operation Area 9 Jember Luqman Arif confirmed the finding of cracked rails around Jatiroto Station, but the incident was directly handled by officers on the field.
"The findings are immediately reported to the chief of Railways and 9.5 Bridge Jatiroto Railways Resort to be followed up to prevent any accident," he revealed.
Arif explained that the officers directly welded the cracked rail line, so the rail could be repaired quickly and did not hinder the trains that would pass by in the morning, such as the Ranggajati train that departed from Jember Station at 5 a.m. local time.
Everything is being handled well and conducting railway checks is a routine activity conducted by officers, as there is a team of flying gang that is on standby round-the-clock at each resort rail and bridge road in the Daop 9 Jember region, he revealed.
He said PT KAI Daop 9 Jember had alerted additional officers to conduct railway checks during the homecoming and return flow during Eid al-Fitr 2018 for 24 hours.
"There are 18 train track inspection officers, and usually within 24 hours, there are two lane inspection officers for round-trip. However, during the Lebaran period, four railway check officers for round-trip are deployed comprising two regular and two additional officers," he added.(*)
