Sandstone Heritage Trust - Rail News

RN 124 - The Sandstone Heritage Trust announces the restoration of NGG16 NO. 88

This well know locomotive that was at one time the pride and joy of the Banana Express on the Port Shepstone to Harding line is due for re-build. Purchased from a private seller three years ago, the locomotive has been standing in the pre-rebuild line at the Sandstone Heritage Trust site at Hoekfontein in the Eastern Free State. The restoration will be undertaken as a joint project by our Bloemfontein workshops and by the running shed at Hoekfontein on the farm in the Eastern Free State. The advantage of restoring Garratts is that they come in three parts. All boiler work is carried out by our highly professional and experienced Bloemfontein team while much of the work on the engine units can be undertaken by our fitters on the farm.

A spokesman for the Sandstone Heritage Trust stated that the reason for going ahead with the restoration work was the fact that at least two of the company's existing Garratts might well be leased in 2006 to operating railways, thereby creating a need for more locomotive power at Sandstone Estates in the Eastern Free State. With the wheat harvest about to commence the company's Garratts will be hard at work hauling large tonnages of grain from outlying farms to the central silos.