Six people remain in hospital after train crash near Paarl

The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) says it has sent officials to visit the commuters who were hospitalised after two Metrorail coaches derailed near Paarl in the Western Cape earlier this week.

“Our thoughts are with all those impacted by the derailment. Their wellbeing is important to us. Of the 25 commuters taken to hospital, 19 have been treated and discharged. We are receiving updates on the recovery of those who remain in hospital,” said Prasa Group CEO Hishaam Emeran.

“Operating a safe passenger railway service is important to us, and we will work with the Railway Safety Regulator to investigate the cause of the derailment to ensure steps are put in place to avoid a similar incident in the future.”

The derailment occurred on Tuesday night at Dal Josafat station near Paarl. The train was en route from Cape Town to Wellington station when the incident occurred.

Recovery operations have commenced to resume passenger train services between Wellington and Bellville.

As part of the recovery process, nine of the 11 coaches were moved to the Salt River depot. The remaining two coaches will be moved after further assessments.

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