TWO TRAIN CRASHES IN 12 HOURS TODAY.

[Bertie Horak]

Not good with 2010 being NEXT YEAR and the Gautrain nearing completion - if we can't operate the old system, what's the chances of running the new system properly?

Johannesburg - Gauteng was hit by two train accidents within 12 hours of each other on Monday, both with over a hundred casualties.

More than a 100 people were injured when two passenger trains collided head-on at Springs West train station in Ekurhuleni on Monday late afternoon, said ER24 emergency medical services.
Earlier around 160 commuters, including a pregnant woman, were injured when two passenger trains rear-ended each other between the Lenasia and Midway stations around 07:15 on Monday.
ER24 spokesperson Werner Vermaak said the number of injured people in the Springs West accident was expected to increase and a temporary medical station had been opened near the station on the corner of Plantation and Springs West roads.
Patients were checked at the station before being taken to nearby hospitals which were on stand-by following the accident.
Paramedics from Netcare 911, ER24, provincial emergency services and disaster management services were on the scene.
More services from the East Rand, Pretoria and Johannesburg were on standby.
The cause of the accident was unclear. The railroad remained closed.
The railway safety regulator said it learned of the second accident "with shock".

"Railway safety inspectors have been dispatched to the scene of the accident in order to conduct a preliminary investigation and establish a root cause."
The regulator said it would engage with the operators to ensure similar accidents would not occur in future.
"In line with the decision relating to the earlier incident, the railway safety regulator has decided to conduct its own investigation into the incident."