Safety is top priority after train derailment

19 September 2024 | SANews

The Minster of Transport, Barbara Creecy and the Transport Deputy Minister Mkhuleko Hlengwa have expressed messages of well wishes and speedy recovery to the 25 passengers that were injured and hospitalized because of a train derailment in Western Cape on the evening of the 17th of September 2024.

They have also expressed their well-wishes to all the passengers and train crew who experienced this trauma.

The passenger train belonging to Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) was en-route to Cape Town Station from the Wellington station, when the incident happened. The derailment took place at the Dal Josafat Station near Paarl in the Western Cape. No fatalities were reported on the scene.

According to the reports from the Metrorail Western Cape, emergency services, including paramedics, firefighters and the SAPS attended the scene to assist the injured passengers, and they were taken to various hospitals in the area for further medical attention. Metrorail Western Cape and PRASA arranged alternative transport to take other passengers to their various destinations.

Both Creecy and Hlengwa have urged the Railway Safety Regulator to fast-track their investigation to determine the root cause of this derailment.

They have also highlighted the fact that safety of passengers across the transport system is the number one priority in the work of the Department and its entities.

The Rail Safety Regulator, together with law enforcement agencies, is currently conducting a preliminary investigation regarding this derailment and has indicated that a preliminary report will be ready in the next 48 hours.

Members of the public will be informed accordingly once the preliminary report is made available.