Railway accident at Kroonstad

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Kroonstad railway accident was the collision of a train with a road train on January 4, 2018 near Kroonstad , South Africa . 19 people died.

Starting position

The Shosholoza Meyl train ran between Port Elizabeth and Johannesburg . It was very busy through the summer vacation. 713 people had booked for the trip, according to another source 429 people should have been on board.

the accident

The train was approaching a level crossing between Hennenman and Kroonstad. At the same time, a truck with two trailers was also approaching the level crossing . The driver is said to have tried to cross the level crossing before the train even though the engine driver operated the horn. However, the truck driver only managed to cross the crossing with half of the truck before he was hit by the train. The collision happened at 9:15 a.m. local time. The truck was dragged along for almost 140 m before the train came to a stop. The locomotive and twelve cars derailed , and seven passenger cars then caught fire. The fire is said to have started from the train's generator car, which was also derailed .

People who were trapped in the rubble were burned to death. While the wagons derailed, they are said to have damaged another car.

consequences

19 people died and 254 were also injured. The truck driver and his passenger survived the accident with minor injuries and were taken to a hospital.

The rescue operations were canceled around 8:50 p.m. when it was dark. A relief train from Mahikeng was expected within 36 hours to evacuate the scene of the accident and make the railroad passable again.

The investigation of rail accidents in South Africa lies with the Railway Safety Regulator , which has initiated an investigation.

The police are investigating culpable homicide.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b afp: 18 dead and more than 250 injured in a train accident in South Africa. In: Neue Zürcher Zeitung , January 5, 2018; accessed on January 20, 2018.
  2. ↑ a b c Ernest Mabuza, Kyle Cowan: At least 20 dead in horror train crash 'number expected to rise. In: Times live , January 4, 2018; accessed on January 5, 2018.
  3. ↑ a b c Nation Nyoka: Update: Train and truck collision death toll now at 19. In: news24 from January 5, 2018: accessed on January 9, 2018.
  4. ↑ a b NN: Mop-up operations to resume after deadly Kroonstad train crash. In: eNews Channel Africa , January 5, 2018; accessed on January 5, 2018.
  5. ↑ a b NN: Kroonstad train crash: Search and Rescue operations halted. In: News24 , January 4, 2018; accessed on January 5, 2018.
  6. ^ Alix Culbertson: South Africa train crash leaves at least 18 dead and 260 hurt. In: Sky News , January 4, 2018; accessed on January 5, 2018.
  7. ^ Occurrence Investigation. Railway Safety Regulator (Ed.), Accessed January 5, 2018.

Coordinates: 27 ° 42 ′ 8.9 ″  S , 27 ° 13 ′ 7.2 ″  E