Indonesia Highlights: More Families from Victims in Sriwijaya Air Disaster Sues Boeing | Animals Gone Wild: Tiger Rampage in West Kalimantan, Kills Human and Tiger | Mount Sinabung Erupts

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – The number of families seeking closure over the deaths of their loved ones on Sriwijaya Air Flight SJ 182 continues to grow, as they moved to sue aircraft manufacturers Boeing for any faults in the plane.

Authorities in Singkawang, West Kalimantan caught one of two tigers that ran loose in the city’s zoo after cornering the endangered animal overnight. The feat came at a cost, as the big cats killed an animal handler, followed by the death of one of the animals.

And Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra erupted again. The eruption started off by sending hot clouds 2500 meters into the atmosphere. Read on for more of these stories, as curated by our editors:

ANTARA FOTO/Hafidz Mubarak A The Indonesian government has halted the search for victims of Sriwijaya Air Flight SJ182 that crashed into the Java Sea on January 9.

More Families from Indonesian Victims in Sriwijaya Air Disaster Sues Boeing

The number of Indonesian families suing Boeing for the loss of their loved ones on a Sriwijaya Air flight from Jakarta to Pontianak, West Kalimantan have increased from three to 17, after 14 families decided to take the American aircraft manufacturer to court.

The families launched the lawsuit nearly a month after the low-cost carrier’s Flight SJ182 went down in waters near the Thousand Islands off Jakarta on Saturday, January 9, as it was flying from the capital to Pontianak, West Kalimantan.

“We have filed the petition for the suit on behalf of the families of the victims of Sriwijaya Air [Flight SJ182] to a district court in Chicago, which is Boeing’s head offices,” said attorney Keizerina Devi Azwar of the Jakarta-based Lex Justitia law firm in a statement dated Saturday, February 6.

“My clients filed this lawsuit to get proper compensation from Sriwijaya Air as the carrier and Boeing as the manufacturer of the plane. We are aware that no amount of compensation can replace the loss of a loved one, but at least they can hold Boeing liable.” “

The plaintiffs designated Lex Justitia to represent them, along with the Chicago-based Nolan Law Group, because of the latter’s experience representing clients who lost loved ones in aviation disasters, including those in Indonesia,” asserted Devi.

“These include Garuda flight number GA 152 that went down over Medan, North Sumatra, as well as Silk Air Flight 185 that crashed off Palembang, South Sumatra in 1997."

At least one plaintiff, Slamet Bowo, is pinning his hopes on the legal suit. “I hope the lawsuit can bring closure to my grieving family, though it will not bring my brother back,“ said Slamet, who lost his brother Mulyadi in the disaster.

Sriwijaya Air Flight SJ 182 went down between the Laki and Lancang islands of the Thousand Islands off Jakarta, minutes after it took off from Soekarno Hatta International Airport.

62 people, among them six crew, 46 adult passengers, seven children and three babies went down with the Boeing 737-500, which dates back to at least 1994.

Source:

https://go.kompas.com/read/2021/02/07/060807474/more-families-from-indonesian-victims-in-sriwijaya-air-disaster-sues-boeing?page=all#page2. 

SHUTTERSTOCK.com/TOM117 A Sumatran Tiger

Animals Gone Wild: Tiger Rampage in West Kalimantan, Indonesia Kills Human and Tiger

Authorities in the city of Singkawang on the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan have nabbed one of two tigers that broke out of the city’s Sinka zoo on Friday, February 6. The catch ended the big cat’s rampage that killed a human as well as one of the felines.

“[We] captured the tiger by shooting it with a tranquilizer dart," said Singkawang Police Precinct chief Grand Commissioner Attendant Prasetiyo Adhi Wibowo to the Antara state news agency.  

The tiger was captured by a joint team from the police, military and West Kalimantan Nature Conservation Agency [ BKSDA] on Saturday evening.

He noted that the one-year old white tiger was secured hours after the team killed the first tiger hours earlier.

“We were forced to kill the other tiger because it broke into the enclosures of the other animals in the zoo and preyed on them.” Prasetiyo maintained that the action was taken after consulting the BKSDA.

A spokesperson for the Sinka Zoo, Elka, said the hunt for the tigers began when they broke out of their enclosure. “The two tigers got loose, after a landslide caused by days of torrential rains caused a gaping hole in their cage,” she asserted. “

The felines then attacked and killed 47-year old Ferry Darmawan, an animal handler who tried to control them.”

Tigers and other wild animals escaping from zoos and facing off against humans are uncommon in Indonesia, as most human and animal conflicts in the country occur in the animals’ natural habitat.

Source:

https://go.kompas.com/read/2021/02/07/031012874/animals-gone-wild-tiger-rampage-in-west-kalimantan-indonesia-kills-human-and?page=all#page2. 

Peneliti Priatna PVMBG Mount Sinabung Erupts, sends hot clouds to a height of 2500 meters

Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra Erupts, Emits Hot Clouds

Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra Province’s has erupted on Saturday, February 6, a few weeks after volcanic activity on Mount Merapi and Mount Semeru in Java jolted people in their vicinity.

“Mountain Sinabung emitted hot clouds to an altitude of 2500 meters,” said Mount Sinabung observer Armen Putra. “The phenomena can be seen clearly on a clear day. It occurs had to hand with smoke on the crater, which grows 200 to 500 meters on the crater.

Armen urged the public not to go within three kilometers of the peak “in case of an eruption. He also urged the public to wear masks to mitigate health risks from the hot clouds as well as ash.

Source:

https://regional.kompas.com/read/2021/02/06/16134131/gunung-sinabung-mengalami-erupsi-luncurkan-awan-panas-sejauh-2500-meter?page=all.