Operations on the Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) Corridor have been severely disrupted due to a derailment and a separate incident of cable theft.
TFR said in a statement late yesterday afternoon that both incidents had "significantly impacted our ability to continue with normal operations, causing inconvenience and delays to our valued customers."
"At approximately 2:05am, 5 June, 20 iron ore-loaded wagons derailed between Loop 9 and 10. Our teams are currently trying to establish the cause of the derailment.
“Dedicated rail network and operations teams have been mobilised to assess the situation, initiate recovery efforts, and restore normal operations as swiftly as possible," TFR said.
The state-owned entity added that in a separate incident at around 10:55pm on Sunday night, thieves stole 23 spans of cable on the Kolomela line in the Northern Cape.
"Our security and overhead traction equipment teams responded promptly.
“Law enforcement agencies have been alerted about the incident. Efforts are underway to normalise operations as soon as possible," TFR said.
It added that it sincerely apologises for the inconvenience caused and continues to provide regular updates as new information becomes available.
The latest cable theft incident is the second debilitating cable theft in the Northern Cape over the past seven days.
The first incident TFR reported last week led to an almost 24-hour closure of the ore corridor between Sishen and Saldanha Bay.
The suspension followed a cable theft incident late last Tuesday night when suspects disconnected and stole 11 spans of catenary and contact wire near Olifantshoek.
