Nearly 100 injured in South Africa train crash

Nearly 100 injured in South Africa train crash

2011-01-15 20:06:32 GMT+7 (ICT)

SPRINGS, SOUTH AFRICA (BNO NEWS) -- Nearly 100 people were injured on late Friday afternoon when two passenger trains collided in South Africa, rescue workers said on Saturday.

The accident happened just before 6 p.m. local time on Friday when two trains collided on a bridge above the Paul Kruger Highway in Springs, a city on the East Rand in the Gauteng province, about 50 kilometers (31 miles) east of Johannesburg. More than 100 people were on both trains.

"Netcare911 Paramedics arrived at the scene to find the crumpled carriageway near the railway lines on the bridge," said Netcare911 spokesman Jeffrey Wicks. "The injured had spilled from the doors that they had managed to prise open."

Seven of the 95 injured passengers were reported to be in a serious condition, while the others were said to have minor to moderate injuries. "They were treated and stabilized at the scene by medics before they were transported by ambulance to area hospitals and clinics for the care that they required," Wicks added.

On September 10, 2010, more than 30 people were injured when two trains, one of them a passenger train, collided near a Metro rail station in the town of Alrode Alberton, also near Johannesburg.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-01-15