/ 21 May 2011

Injury toll in Soweto train accident rises to over 800

Injury Toll In Soweto Train Accident Rises To Over 800

The injured toll of Thursday’s train crash in Soweto has risen to 852, Johannesburg emergency services said on Saturday.

“We have consolidated numbers with emergency organisations and have utimately established how many people were injured,” said spokesperson Synock Matobako.

He said many of the injured had been discharged from hospital.

Injuries varied from head and spinal trauma to minor fractures.

Two trains collided in Meadowlands on Thursday but no deaths were reported. The Railway Safety Regulator is investigating the collision and a team of inspectors were at the scene following the accident.

Gauteng health minister Ntombi Mekgwe was expected to visit some of the injured in hospital on Saturday.

“I would like to thank emergency workers who were at the scene of the train accident and assisted in stabilising patients,” Mekgwe said in a statement.

“Health workers who provided medical care at the different hospitals helped to prevent a possible disaster.” – Sapa