Train derails in Soweto, 8 hurt

Eight people received medical treatment after a train derailed in Soweto yesterday, but there were conflicting reports about what had happened to them.

While Joburg emergency services said the eight were treated for injuries received when they jumped from the train, Metrorail said they were treated for shock.

Joburg Emergency Management Services spokesman Robert Mulaudzi said the eight passengers jumped off the train when they saw smoke and thought it was on fire.

One person was critically injured and seven had minor knee injuries. They were treated at the scene before being taken to Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital.

However, Metrorail provincial manager Thembela Khulu said no one jumped from the train and that the passengers had been “treated for shock”. “… There are no physical injuries.” Khulu said the smoke seen by passengers was from a grassfire alongside the railway tracks.

She said the cause of the derailment was not yet known – but “it is not something major”.