Africa-Press – Namibia. A TRAIN that is used to ferry manganese ore to the port of Lüderitz from mines in the Northern Cape in South Africa has derailed at a siding between Goageb and Aus in southern Namibia. Abigail Raubenheimer, the spokesperson of TransNamib, confirmed that the derailment occurred during the early hours of Friday morning.
Raubenheimer said that the driver and assistant driver of the train sustained minor injuries when the locomotive and several of the cars in which the manganese ore is transported fell off the tracks.
Although not confirmed, it seems that the derailment occurred after the manganese train crashed into stationary train cars that were parked at the railway siding.
Raubenheimer said an investigation to determine the actual cause of the crash will be launched as soon as the accident scene is cleared of all the damaged equipment.
In the meantime, cranes and other heavy machinery has been dispatched to the accident site to clear up wreckage and repair damage to the railway tracks. Raubenheimer indicated that the railway will be re-opened for use by Monday.
