27 Jul 2014

Transnet Freight Rail in partnership with Botswana Railways held Kotsi IV accident Simulation Exercise at Ramatlabama level crossing on  July 24 with a staged real life accident wherein various role players showcasing how they will respond to the accident should it happen.

Speaking during the simulation exercise, Botswana Railways general manager, Mr Dominic Ntwaagae said it was necessary to have preparedness and a response plan that would be the basis of facilitating, organising and coordinating all actions to respond effectively during a rail incident.

Mr Ntwaagae said the simulation exercise began in 2008 with Kotsi I, Kotsi II in 2011 and Kotsi III in 2012 and 2014 marked the fourth simulation exercise and through these exercises, both railways have found it imperative to systematically adapt to enhance their preparedness level.

He said these exercises were scheduled annually and normally held at level crossings between Botswana and South African border at Ramatlabama at a place usually referred to as “no-man’s land.” Mr Ntwaagae also said the exercise served a pivotal role as participating teams were given the opportunity to learn all the critical stages entailed in the response processes and to also identify gaps in their disaster management plans, learning from it and continuously improving the process.

He said the current simulation exercise was not a disaster “preparedness matter” only, but also a “compliance matter” between the two rail operators as required by the Railway Safety Regulator  Act to ensure that their business operations took safety as a critical component.

However, Mr Ntwaagae said it was important not to take plans just as “theoretical exercises” but they must be tested frequently so that they could be evaluated, adapted and updated before and after an actual event.

For her part, general manager for Transnet Freight Rail Ms Mandisa Mondi said their company supported the simulation exercises as it boosted their intentions to position their company to become a profitable and sustainable freight railway business in Africa by the year 2020 despite operating with limited resources.

She said to achieve that level of excellence, they remained proactive in risk management whereby they ensured that they had trained personnel who would ensure that they operated efficiently and effectively to minimise rail accidents and to ensure that the transported freight arrived safely at different destinations.

he also said they intended to work tirelessly to create customer trust as well as creating safer jobs for their employees.

Stakeholders involved in the exercise were Botswana Defence Force, Athlone hospital, South East Health Management teams and Botswana Police as well as  South African Police Service, Mafikeng local Municipality, Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality, South African Revenue Services, Department of Health, South African National Defence Force,  , Department of Home Affairs, and North West Provincial Traffic Department. ENDS