Question NW651 to the Minister of Transport

Reply:

a) (i) The preliminary investigations found that the points which guide the train movement were not completely closed for safe passage of trains. The Board of Inquiry (BOI) into this accident will further probe the matter and identify the underlying causes.

(ii) The BOI is mandated to investigate amongst other things, the following:

• The immediate and root/underlying causes leading up to and surrounding the incident,
• The adequacy, effectiveness and personnel knowledge of the relevant procedures and training background regarding activities pertaining to adherence to, specifically applicable train operating procedures by the train drivers and the Train Control Officer (TCO) concerned as set out in local instructions, General Appendix and other applicable directives,
• The activation, execution and management of the emergency and clearing up process as set out in local contingency plans and relevant directives,
• The adequacy and effectiveness of maintenance systems and procedures for perway and signaling, and
• Review the history of previous near misses; in order to ascertain what corrective actions were taken to address these.

(iii) (aa) The Railway Safety Regulator (RSR) immediately conducted a preliminary investigation and subsequently issued a report on 16 February 2017. Shortly after issuing a preliminary report, the Term of Reference (ToR) for sourcing expertise of various disciplines were developed. The supply chain management processes are in progress

(bb) It is envisaged to complete the BOI by end of September 2017. However, it should be noted that BOI’s could take six (6) to twelve (12) months to complete.

b) The following expertise with be represented on the BOI

- Legal Expert (Chairperson)

- Signal Expert

- Perway Expert

- Human Factors Experts

c) Members has not been appointed yet. The process is being facilitated by the RSR Supply Chain Management (SCM) department in line with the legislative framework.