Two killed in the Rovos Rail train accident in South Africa

April 22nd, 2010 - 2:58 am ICT by Aishwarya Bhatt  

Pretoria, Apr 21 (THAINDIAN NEWS) Two passengers were killed in a train accident involving the Rovos Rail, in South Africa. The luxury Rovos Rail train went off the tracks at the Bosman Street railway station, according to Johan Pieterse, who is the Emergency Medical Services spokesman. Around 25 people were also injured in the mishap. They have been taken to hospital for medical aid and treatment. Some of the injured have sustained some serious injuries as well. Besides them there were another 23 passengers who were described as ‘walking wounded’.

The train had a total of 55 passengers and it had originated at Cape Town. The mishap happened when the locomotive was being changed at the Bosman Street railway station, and the train began to roll downhill. Among the people who died, include a woman and her infant baby, who was born just minutes after the derailment of the luxury train.

“It’s absolute carnage. Some of the railway coaches are lying on top of each other and absolute wreckages. They had to use hydraulic rescue equipment to cut some of the people free,” according to emergency worker Chris Botha. The luxury train had many international passengers also. “We are dealing with a mixture of foreigners and South Africans,” said Johan Pieterse, spokesperson for Emergency Medical Services.

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