EWN reports that it is still unclear what sparked a fire that gutted several coaches at the Retreat station depot on Sunday, but Metrorail's Richard Walker indicated it was highly unlikely the fire was caused by an electrical fault.  

Walker indicated that since October last year Metrorail has experienced a sharp increase in arson attacks on its infrastructure and more 50 coaches have been damaged.  "That has really puts a lot of pressure on us to be able to provide commuters with a reliable services and you know it actually exacerbates the situation.  We are asking our commuters to bear with us.  We are doing everything in our power to recover the lost sets, but obviously it’s not a short term process."  Metrorail is offering a reward of a R100,000 for anyone who comes forward with information leading to arrests.

• This short report by Kevin Brandt is at EWN
• Read too, Hammanskraal bus commuters plead for intervention, at The Citizen

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