Around 200 people were injured on Tuesday morning when two Metrorail trains collided at the Geldenhuys station in Germiston.

According to the Railway Safety Regulator (RSR) a total number of 226 injuries were reported with the train crew of both trains sustaining minor injuries.

In a statement released on Tuesday afternoon the RSR said that its inspectors indicate that human error could be responsible for the collision:

Human error to blame?

“On this particular section, trains had to be manually authorised by the Train Control Officials since the normal signalling system was not available due to problems associated with signal cables.

Train 4317 was manually authorised to enter a platform at Geldenhuys station. Immediately after entering the station the train failed as a result of a technical problem and first line responders were requested to assist with the technical problems.

While Train 4317 was stationary at the platform, Train 0723 was authorised to enter the station. Information received from the RSR inspectors indicate human error can be attributed to the Train 0723 being authorised into the same platform, which subsequently resulted in a rear-end collision.”

Preliminary findings to be presented

This is the second train collision in the country in the space of a week. On 4 January 2018 a dozen people were killed and hundreds injured when a Shosholoza Meyl train collided with a truck at the Geneva level crossing in the Free State Province.

The Chairperson of the RSR will update the media on the preliminary findings of the its investigations into the level crossing accident and the status of the collision between two Metrorail trains on Wednesday, 10 January 2018.