Pretoria - A train commuter claimed more than R8 million in damages from the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) by alleging that he was pushed out of an overcrowded train and that he had lost both his legs as a result.
Thabo Nkosi, 36, of Kliprivier, south of Joburg, told the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, that seconds after he was pushed out of the crowded train, he looked down at his legs.
He noticed that the train had severed his left leg, while his right leg was broken.
He was airlifted to hospital, where his right leg had to be amputated.
Nkosi blamed the fact that he was now a double-amputee on the negligence of Prasa.
He said he had boarded a train in the early hours of January 29, 2011, at Skraamsdam, near Kliprivier. According to him, he bought a ticket at the station and headed in the direction of Germiston to visit his girlfriend.
Nkosi said the platform was congested with people and when he boarded the train, it was so full that he could hardly get inside. He explained that he grabbed the closest strap hanging from the roof to hold on to.
He said the doors of the train never closed and when the train changed tracks, there was a huge jerking motion and the crowd fell forward.
This, in turn, caused him to fall out of the train and under its wheels.
He said that as the area was deserted, he had to wait for a long time for the paramedics to find him.
His condition was so dire that he had to be airlifted to hospital.
Prasa, on the other hand, claimed that the accident happened while he was crossing the train tracks. It was also pointed out that no train ticket was to be found in his possession.
Nkosi said he must have lost it during the fall, because he definitely bought it.
He blamed Prasa for his ill fortune and said it had a duty to ensure that its commuters were safe. Nkosi complained that there were no security officers at the station or on board to control the crowds. He also said it was dangerous to travel with the train doors open, especially in an overcrowded train.
Prasa, who had appointed its own investigator, said it was impossible that there were crowds who pushed against Nkosi and caused him to fall out. The accident happened on a Saturday morning at a deserted station, which was only in use for goods trains.
There were no guards, nor was there a ticket office.
But Nkosi insisted there were a lot of people who at night slept or took shelter at the station and that they were crowding the train. Regarding the ticket he bought, he said he remembered on second thoughts that it was a monthly ticket and not one he had bought that day.
Prasa’s investigator also could not find any recording of a train accident during this time, but told the court that it did not meant that this did not happen. Doctors at the nearby hospital confirmed that Nkosi was admitted at the time, but according to them, he told them that he was hit when he tried to cross the tracks.
The judge and counsel, meanwhile, went for an inspection in loco to the station, where it was noted that it was a deserted spot with hardly a platform.
Judge Nomsa Khumalo said despite the fact that the accident happened on a Saturday, Nkosi could not explain where he came from and exactly where he was heading. He did not have a ticket with him and the place where the accident occurred was not a station where people travelled from.
She also said that Nkosi at first claimed he was pushed by a crowd, but later he said the train veered and he fell out. The judge said she cannot hold Prasa accountable under these circumstances. She dismissed the claim and slapped Nkosi with the legal bill.