"Alleged Theft of Rail Fasteners" Derails ArcelorMittal Liberia's Train

Aug 28, 2023

.... “ArcelorMittal Liberia’s railway operations have suffered many similar attacks and sabotage by criminals who remove rail sleepers and fasteners thereby posing huge risks of accidents on the track.” the company said in a statement.

ArcelorMittal Liberia has reported an alleged theft of the company’s railway fasteners by unknown individuals has led to the derailment of one of its trains.

The accident took place while the train was en route from the company mines in Yekepa to the port in Buchanan, Grand Bassa County in the early morning hours of August 28.

ArcelorMittal has, however, not reported any fatalities or injuries but said that a good portion of the ore on board the train was lost. In time past, some of the accidents involving ArcelorMittal Liberia trains usually turned bloody, resulting in death and injuries.

“[The accident] was due to the theft of railway fasteners by unknown individuals,” the company said in a release. “AML has experienced a surge in the theft of rail ties and other metal fasteners that secure the tracks to the rail sleepers.”

“There were no injuries or fatalities recorded. The incident happened in the early morning hours of, August 28, at Kilometer 32, around the Liberia Agriculture Company in Grand Bassa County,” it added.

According to the release, an inspection of the derailment site by the steel giant is ongoing, which is intended to ascertain the level of damage caused by the incident.

Normal production remains shut down because of the accident, the release said.

“ArcelorMittal Liberia’s railway operations have suffered many similar attacks and sabotage by criminals who remove rail sleepers and fasteners thereby posing huge risks of accidents on the track.” the company said. “The incident as well as others in the past have been reported to the Liberia National Police.”

The management of ArcelorMittal Liberia condemns in the strongest terms, these constant criminal attacks on its operations and has called for the arrest and prosecution of those responsible.

About ArcelorMittal

ArcelorMittal is the world's leading steel and mining company, with a presence in 60 countries and primary steelmaking facilities in 17 countries. In 2020, ArcelorMittal had revenues of $53.3 billion and crude steel production of 71.5 million metric tonnes, while iron ore production reached 58.0 million metric tonnes.