Young train stowaways ‘becoming a problem’

POLICE at Usakos are concerned about a new pastime of some young boys – joyriding across the country as stowaways on goods trains.

On March 6, Police caught four boys – between the ages of 10 and 14 – hiding on a TransNamib goods train from Otjiwarongo to Walvis Bay. As no criminal charges were brought, Usakos Unit Commander Sergeant Jeffrey Urib said the children were released, only to be caught on the same train nine days later, last Tuesday.The boys were then kept at the Usakos Police station while arrangements were made for their parents to fetch them.On Monday, Urib told The Namibian that two people had phoned to identify three of the boys, but failed to show up.In the meantime, they had been joined by four more children who had been found hiding on a train on the Otjiwarongo-Walvis Bay route on Thursday.”They were part of the same group,” Urib said.”When we spoke to the first four, they mentioned that they were eight originally, but that they had gotten separated somewhere.”The children’s stories did not add up, Urib said.They first claimed to be on their way to meet their families at Arandis, but it was then discovered that none of them had family at the town.On Thursday, Police apparently arranged for the second group of four boys to be accommodated at the State Hospital, and to meet with a local social worker the next day.However, Urib said, the boys absconded from the hospital overnight.The first four boys had also since disappeared, Urib said.Asked about the incidents on Monday, Trans­Namib’s General Manager of Operations, Jack Dempsey, said only the first of the three incidents had been reported to him.”Trains are checked, but you must understand that those trains can be very long and you only have a driver and his assistant checking,” he said, acknowledging that children could easily sneak onto the train.”It’s something that must be strongly discouraged,” he continued.”You don’t know when the train starts moving, while trying to get on.A sudden jerk of the wagon and you can find yourself on the rails.Also, we often carry very flammable things, so there’s really a lot that can go wrong.And there’s no one to stop the train if you find yourself in trouble,” he said.As no criminal charges were brought, Usakos Unit Commander Sergeant Jeffrey Urib said the children were released, only to be caught on the same train nine days later, last Tuesday.The boys were then kept at the Usakos Police station while arrangements were made for their parents to fetch them.On Monday, Urib told The Namibian that two people had phoned to identify three of the boys, but failed to show up. In the meantime, they had been joined by four more children who had been found hiding on a train on the Otjiwarongo-Walvis Bay route on Thursday.”They were part of the same group,” Urib said.”When we spoke to the first four, they mentioned that they were eight originally, but that they had gotten separated somewhere.”The children’s stories did not add up, Urib said.They first claimed to be on their way to meet their families at Arandis, but it was then discovered that none of them had family at the town.On Thursday, Police apparently arranged for the second group of four boys to be accommodated at the State Hospital, and to meet with a local social worker the next day.However, Urib said, the boys absconded from the hospital overnight.The first four boys had also since disappeared, Urib said.Asked about the incidents on Monday, Trans­Namib’s General Manager of Operations, Jack Dempsey, said only the first of the three incidents had been reported to him.”Trains are checked, but you must understand that those trains can be very long and you only have a driver and his assistant checking,” he said, acknowledging that children could easily sneak onto the train.”It’s something that must be strongly discouraged,” he continued.”You don’t know when the train starts moving, while trying to get on.A sudden jerk of the wagon and you can find yourself on the rails.Also, we often carry very flammable things, so there’s really a lot that can go wrong.And there’s no one to stop the train if you find yourself in trouble,” he said.