On the
Bulawayo Mafeking line, steam trains were used until a few years
ago.
These
trains could go only so far with the water they carried in the
tender so there were water points along the way at certain stations.
One such
station was Seruli where I was stationed early in my career on the
railways.
Water for
Seruli also had to be transported from another station by rail
tanker.
In order
to have the tankers filled a train could carry the 3 water tankers
overweight.
The train
was stopped at the points, the engine cut off and diverted onto the
loop and past the tankers, and them push the tanks back onto the
load.
I stopped
the train at the points and informed the driver to pick up the
tanks, cut the engine off and jumped onto the steps of the engine as
it came past me.
The train
was going to go onto the loop, as it was to cross the mail train at
my station.
As I put
my foot on the step of the engine it slipped off and I took a
tumble.
Fortunately I kept my arms next to my body as I fell and the engine
missed me by inches, but I was covered from head to foot in the muck
that falls off the train next to the line.
“OK”
shouted the driver, “We will carry on and pull into the loop
ourselves”.
I rushed
to my room and scrubbed myself, got dressed in clean uniform and was
in time to hand orders to the driver and guard of the mail train.
Close
call!
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