Transnet has suspended freight rail on its economically important railway line to Saldanha Bay due to"extreme weather conditions" in the Western and Northern Cape.The state-owned freight rail group said that trains had been shut down just before noon on Thursday.
"Strong wind conditions caused the top-mounted electrical gear of a locomotive to become entangled in the overhead cables. This resulted in damage to 600 metres of overhead track equipment."The group said it had suffered further damage from heavy downpours, hail and high winds, which resulted in flash floods cutting off access to a 150km section of the railway reserve.