Victims Killed in Garut Ammunition Explosion Allegedly Participated in Destruction Process

TEMPO.CO, Garut - Civilian casualties in the location of the TNI's ammunition destruction in Sagara Village, Cibalong District, Garut Regency, West Java, were suspected to have helped the detonation team. "Four of my friends died," said Aom, a 46-year-old resident of Cibalong to Tempo on Monday, May 12, 2025.

This ammunition destruction incident resulted in the deaths of 13 people. The number consisted of four TNI personnel and the rest of nine individuals were civilians.

According to Aom, civilians usually assist in arranging unused or expired ammunition for detonation. However, he was unwilling to explain what kind of assistance was provided. These detonation activities are usually carried out by the TNI 3-4 times a year. "Today, I did not go to the detonation site because I had other matters to attend to," he said.

In addition to assisting the officers, residents usually collect the remaining ammunition materials. The items pursued by the residents include iron and brass to be sold to scrap dealers. "Most of the collected items are iron," he said.

He admitted that no previous incidents of explosions causing loss of life had occurred. This was because during the destruction process, it was closely guarded by TNI personnel.

The Cibalong Sub-district Head, Dianavia Faizal, suspected that the death of the residents was due to their pursuit of the remaining ammunition shells being destroyed. However, the tragic explosion incident befell the residents. "It is suspected that residents took advantage of the moment to hunt for shells to be sold. But I do not know the detailed events," he said.

Faizal admitted that the detonation activity had been notified by the TNI to the sub-district government a week earlier. The aim was to inform the residents not to approach the detonation site.

As of the writing of this news, there has been no official information regarding the presence of residents at the detonation site. Whether they were involved in helping the ammunition destruction process or just simply hunting for the remaining ammunition shells.

Previously, the Chief of the TNI Information Center, Major General Kristomei Sianturi, confirmed that 13 people, four of whom were TNI soldiers, died in the explosion during the disposal of expired ammunition at Sagara Village, Cibalong, Garut Regency, West Java, on Monday, May 12, 2025.

Kristomei mentioned that all the deceased victims who died on the spot have been evacuated from the explosion site to Pameungpeuk Regional Hospital for autopsy and the handling of the bodies.

"We continue to coordinate with the relevant authorities on site to secure the detonation site and to clear the area because we are concerned that there might be other explosions," said the Head of Information Center in a live TV interview in Jakarta on Monday.

Major General Kristomei continued that the TNI is currently focusing on investigating the cause of the explosion. "In the future, we will detail what the cause of the explosion was," said Kristomei.

Separately, the Chief of the Indonesian Army Staff (KSAD) General Maruli Simanjuntak also confirmed the incident of the explosion of expired ammunition in Garut. KSAD mentioned that the incident is still under investigation.

The explosion occurred around 09:30 AM when several officers from the Indonesian Army were about to dispose of unusable or expired ammunition on a piece of land owned by the Garut Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA), which is usually the location for the disposal of expired ammunition owned by the Indonesian Army.

"The detonation area belongs to the Garut BKSDA, which has routinely been used for the disposal of expired ammunition," said Kristomei.

The explosive materials being destroyed were the property of the Indonesian Army, specifically from the Central Ammunition Depot (Gupusmu) III, the Center for Indonesian Army Equipment (Puspalad).

Editor’s Choice: Ammunition Disposal Incident Leaves 13 Presumed Dead in Garut, West Java

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