Train Accident

[Stefan Andrzejewski]

I have just heard on the radio 16h00 news 702 reports a train accident at Boshof near Potchefstroom. Two trains collided and 84 people were injured. Does anyone have more info on this.

[Derek Walker]

From News24.



80 hurt in train collision
2009-12-07 15:24

Johannesburg - About 80 people were injured when two trains collided on a rail track in Boshoff, outside Potchefstroom, on Monday afternoon, paramedics said.

ER24 spokesperson Werner Vermaak said the injured were mostly children and a mobile clinic had been set up to treat the people.

No deaths and critical patients were recorded as yet as emergency services personnel continued searching the trains for more people.

----------------------------
One killed in train collision
2009-12-07 16:26
80 hurt in train collision

Johannesburg - A train manager has died and 80 other people were injured when two passenger trains collided along the Carletonville road in Boshoff, outside Potchefstroom, on Monday, North West police said.

Superintendent Lesego Metsi said it appeared the trains, one travelling from the Johannesburg direction and the other from Kimberley, collided after one of them failed to change tracks at around 14:20.

One of the trains lost its head on impact and several other coaches were derailed, but the locomotives did not overturn.

Metsi said emergency services personnel were still on the scene just before 16:00.

ER24 spokesperson Werner Vermaak confirmed the train manager had multiple facial injuries and paramedics could not revive her.

He said most of the injured people were toddlers and some were teenagers.

Vermaak said most people suffered moderate injuries and no one was critical.

Motorists are causing traffic congestion at the site of the crash, North West public safety said.

Spokesperson Lesiba Kgwele appealed to motorists to not stop at the scene as they were interfering with the various emergency personnel assisting the injured people.

He said traffic officials were on the scene to manage the congestion

[Luca Lategan]

Latest news states a passenger train head-on collision near Potchefstroom. Our informants at operating could not / would not tell us which trains were involved or exactly where. They did tell us that apparently it took place at Frederikstad. The first train was instructed to enter the loop for the crossing. The driver reportedly did not have his ":Chubb" key with him?? He was then instructed to pull into the Main Line. The driver of the approaching train was then instructed to stop at the points, open the "Chubb" points lock & proceed onto the loop, to enable the crossing to be made. Reported that he must have forgotten to stop & ploughed into the stationery train. We surmise that the train on the main line was a goods train, the other which was originally booked for the main line a passenger train. Just spoken to another chap. Who states number of injured not 80, but much less.

Accident greetings,

John & Jacque.

[Dylan Knott]

Is this section CTC or radio train order? Sounds like hand operated points!

[Dylan Knott]

http://www.news24.com/Content/SouthAfri ... _collision

Now says 2 people killed and states Premiere Classe and Transkaroo were involved. Can someone please confirm?

[Luca Lategan]

SABC 2 Afrikaans news also just confimed that 2 people dead of which one the guard. Chrash at Boshof. They said that footage will be shown on the 07h00 Afrikaans news tomorrow morning on SABC 3

[Luca Lategan]

And the number of injuries keeps on rising:

One killed, 107 injured in train collision

One person has been killed and at least 107 injured – four critically – after two passenger trains collided in Potchefstroom, outside Johannesburg.

A pregnant woman was killed and another person thought to be a train operator was critically injured. Emergency services are at the scene in Boschkop on the Carletonville Road, about 25km away from Potchefstroom.

A mobile clinic has been set up. Fire and rescue services are scouring the wreckage for further injured passengers.

[allanroy]

from news24

Cape Town - One of the trains involved in a collision in Boshoff, outside Potchefstroom, on Monday was the luxury Premier Classe.

Eighty people were injured and two people killed in the collision between the Premier Classe, owned by Shosholoza Meyl, and the Trans-Karoo train.

http://www.news24.com/Content/SouthAfri ... h_-_2_dead

[allanroy]

Now confirmed to be two Shosholoza Meyl trains

According to Shosholoza Meyl the trains involved were the economy class Train No 17007 going from Cape Town to Johannesburg and the tourist class Train No 71010 going from Johannesburg to Cape Town. In a statement the company said there were 494 passengers onboard the economy class train and 159 in the tourist train. The damage was estimated at R30-million.

[Luca Lategan]

One person has been killed and at least 110 injured – four critically – after two passenger trains collided in Potchefstroom, outside Johannesburg.

A pregnant woman was killed and another person thought to be a train operator was critically injured. The pregnant woman earlier identified as a train manager, was in fact a 24-year-old passenger on the train travelling from Cape Town. The injured were taken to the Lesley Williams and Potchefstroom hospitals.

Superintendent Lesego Metsi said it appeared the trains, going in opposite directions, collided after one of them failed to change tracks around 2.20pm.

According to Shosholoza Meyl the trains involved were the economy class Train No 17007 going from Cape Town to Johannesburg and the tourist class Train No 71010 going from Johannesburg to Cape Town. In a statement the company said there were 494 passengers onboard the economy class train and 159 in the tourist train. The damage was estimated at R30 million.

Railway Safety Regulator spokesman Lawrence Venkile said a number of inspectors had been sent to investigate the accident.

Based on the investigation's outcomes, the regulator would ensure measures were put in place to prevent similar collisions.

[Stefan Andrzejewski]

If it was these two trains they were both late, the JHB bound horribly late. According to the timetable the NOrth bound sitter should have gone through Potch around 09h15. The Cape town bound Tourist goes through Potch around 13H15. Premier Classe arrives in CT Monday afternoons at 16h15 so it would unlikely be the P Classe. Only time tell

[Luca Lategan]

With our late departure of 11h10 out of Johannesburg, we only reached Potchefstroom at 14h05. Maybe they had similar problems today.

[Stefan Andrzejewski]

Go to this site for some photos of the accident http://multimedia.timeslive.co.za/photo ... -disaster/

[Stefan Andrzejewski]

Grim stats out this morning. Over 1.000 people are killed on our roads every month. This was stats for the first six months of this year. The main culprit, yes you guessed right, Mini bus Taxi's. That is a good case to spend even more money and get our train system tip top and accesable to the population. Get the people off the roads.

[Steve Appleton]

This rather non-sensical report appears in today's (Tues 15 Dec 2009) issue of "The Times". The report's source is given as SAPA.
http://www.timeslive.co.za/news/article233551.ece

'Shortcoming' in Train Radio System.
Dec 14, 2009 10:52 PM. By Sapa.

There is a "significant shortcoming" in the radio system used to communicate with train drivers, the Railway Safety Regulator warned. Spokesman Carvel Webb said the problem came to light during the regulator's investigation of a train accident in North West that left a pregnant woman dead and more than 100 people injured earlier this month.
The accident happened when two Shosholoza Meyl passenger trains collided between Potchefstroom and Oberholzer.
The radio system is used by train drivers to obtain authorisation from a central controller before proceeding on a section of track.
It has replaced the coloured (sic) signal-light system, but is vulnerable to vandalism and cable theft (sic).

Radio is subject to vandalism and cable theft? Perhaps the word 'but' should read 'which'. I also thought the Radio Train Order system directly replaced van Schoor tokens and semaphore signals on that section - that colour-light signals were never installed, but I may be wrong. Not only that but I also thought the system used is 'Track Warrent' not RTO, but again I may be wrong. I suppose that the RTO and Track Warrant systems are sufficiently similar in concept that the differences between them would not be obvious to a non-railway person.

Being intimately involved in FOTR train operations, I would certainly welcome a more accurate and detailed explanation of the shortcoming found.