Eight people were injured when they jumped from a moving train to flee the current from an electricity cable that fell on to a carriage in Germiston on Friday.
Emergency services spokesperson Johan van der Heever said the cable made contact with the body of the train after a malfunction in the overhead system.
Passengers panicked when they felt the current.
They jumped from the train as it pulled slowly into Ravens Clip station in Germiston, east of Johannesburg, at about 7.30am.
The eight passengers were not seriously injured, but were treated for cuts and bruises at the Rosebank clinic.
Van der Heever said the incident could have been far worse if the train had been moving faster. — Sapa