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Mpumelelo Nyoni Chronicle Reporter
A BULAWAYO man is battling for life in hospital after he rammed his Nissan Hardbody into a National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) train at a rail/road crossing on Monday.

The incident occurred near National Foods in Bulawayo at around 6PM.

NRZ public relations manager Fanuel Masikati confirmed the incident.

He said Trymore Mafume (age not given) was driving alone when the train side swiped his vehicle.

“I can confirm that Trymore Mafume was involved in a collision with an NRZ train while trying to cross a rail/road level crossing near National Foods on Monday.

“An ambulance was called and he was ferried to United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) and is in a serious condition,” said Masikati.

The NRZ spokesperson advised motorists to obey road rules.

“We are appealing to motorists to exercise extreme caution when approaching level crossings. You can’t win an accident with a train and lives are lost unnecessarily as a result of failure to adhere to road signs,” said Masikati.

He said NRZ was embarking on awareness campaigns on the importance of adhering to road rules.

Statistics show that from January 2007 to December 2013, 138 people died and 488 were injured in accidents at rail/road level crossings.

In 2007 a commuter omnibus rammed into a goods train that was travelling from Harare to Bindura, killing 34 people along Kirkman Road in Harare.