The National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) has urged members of the public, particularly those in the Southeast Lowveld, to exercise extreme caution when walking near rail tracks during this peak sugarcane harvesting period, which sees increased train activity.
The appeal, made on Wednesday, 6 August, follows the death of an unidentified man who was struck by a train while walking along the tracks between Chiredzi and Triangle on Tuesday evening.
The fatal accident occurred during the peak of the sugarcane harvesting season, a time when train traffic in the Lowveld is especially high. The NRZ said:
A few days after a train driver heroically saved the life of a woman walking on the tracks in Mutare, the NRZ regrets to announce the death of an as yet unidentified man who was struck by a train while walking on the tracks between Chiredzi and Triangle on Tuesday evening.
The NRZ particularly encourages members of the Lowveld to exercise extreme caution time of the year since it is the peak sugarcane harvesting period when there is a lot of train activity.
Just days ago, Lisa Shumba, a 23-year-old woman from Mutare, narrowly escaped death thanks to the quick thinking of a train driver.
Shumba was walking along active railway tracks near a busy section of Mutare while wearing earphones, completely unaware of an oncoming NRZ locomotive. Despite repeated horn blasts, she remained oblivious to the danger.
In a split-second decision, the train’s engineman hurled a water bottle from the moving train, which landed just in front of Shumba. Startled, she turned around and saw the train bearing down on her.
She leapt off the tracks, suffering only minor bruises as the train clipped her. She was treated and discharged from the hospital the same day.
NRZ hailed the driver’s actions as “nothing short of heroic” and used the incident to warn the public about the dangers of walking on railway lines while distracted by headphones or mobile devices.
Pindula WhatsApp Channel
Facebook Page
Leave a Reply