|
South African Class 37-000
The South African Railways Class of 1981 is a mainline diesel-electric locomotive. Between May 1981 and 1982, the South African Railways placed one hundred Class General Motors Electro-Motive Division type GT26M2C diesel-electric locomotives in service. After these locomotives were commissioned, the national carrier was not to invest in new diesel-electric locomotives again until 2009, nearly three decades later. Manufacturer The Class type GT26M2C diesel-electric locomotive was designed for the South African Railways (SAR) by General Motors Electro-Motive Division (GM-EMD) and built by General Motors South Africa (GMSA) in Port Elizabeth. Equipped with later model GM-EMD D31 traction motors instead of the earlier GM-EMD D29B, it is a more powerful version of the GM-EMD type GT26MC Classes 34-200, 34-600 and 34-800. Service The Class locomotives work on mainlines in the northern and northeastern parts of the country. Most of them are shedded at Ermelo and Lydenburg in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Electro-Motive Diesel
Progress Rail Locomotives, doing business as Electro-Motive Diesel (EMD), is an American manufacturer of diesel-electric locomotives, locomotive products and diesel engines for the rail industry. The company is owned by Caterpillar through its subsidiary Progress Rail. Electro-Motive Diesel traces its roots to the Electro-Motive Engineering Corporation, a designer and marketer of gasoline-electric self-propelled rail cars founded in 1922 and later renamed Electro-Motive Company (EMC). In 1930, General Motors purchased Electro-Motive Company and the Winton Engine Co., and in 1941 it expanded EMC's realm to locomotive engine manufacturing as Electro-Motive Division (EMD). In 2005, GM sold EMD to Greenbriar Equity Group and Berkshire Partners, which formed Electro-Motive Diesel to facilitate the purchase. In 2010, Progress Rail completed the purchase of Electro-Motive Diesel from Greenbriar, Berkshire, and others. EMD's headquarters, engineering facilities and parts manufacturing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Empangeni
Empangeni is a city in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is approximately 157 kilometres north of Durban, in hilly countryside, overlooking a flat coastal plain and the major harbour town of Richards Bay 16 kilometres away. The N2 freeway runs east from Empangeni intersecting John Ross Highway (R34) which connects Empangeni and Richards Bay. The climate is sub-tropical with an average temperature of 28.4 °C in summer and 14.5 °C in Winter. The town is said, by local residents, to not have a real winter, as temperatures are seldom very low. History Humble beginnings In 1851, the Norwegian Missionary Society established a mission station on the banks of the eMpangeni river. The river was named after the profusion of Mpange trees (''Trema guineensis'') growing along its banks. The mission was later moved to Eshowe, 61 kilometres north-west. In 1894 a magistracy was established. The Zululand Railway reached the town in January 1903 and linked the area to Durban and Eshowe. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South African Class 39-000
The Spoornet Class 39-000 of 2006 is a South African diesel-electric locomotive from the Spoornet era. In 2005, Transwerk commenced a project of rebuilding one hundred existing locomotives to new Class 39-000 Electro-Motive Diesel type GT26CU-3 locomotives for Spoornet. Only five were eventually rebuilt and placed in service between April 2006 and 2009. Manufacturer In 2005, a project commenced to rebuild one hundred Class 39-000 Electro-Motive Diesel (EMD) type GT26CU-3 diesel-electric locomotives for Spoornet from Classes 34-600 and 34-800 type GT26MC and Class 37-000 type GT26M2C locomotives. The original locomotives had all originally been designed by General Motors Electro-Motive Division (GM-EMD) and had been built by General Motors South Africa (GMSA) in Port Elizabeth between 1974 and 1981. Suitable frames from wrecked locomotives were to be used.Information supplied by staff at Transnet Rail Engineering, Bloemfontein and KoedoespoortSouth African Railways Index and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rustenburg
Rustenburg (; , Afrikaans and Dutch: ''City of Rest'') is a city at the foot of the Magaliesberg mountain range. Rustenburg is the most populous city in North West province, South Africa (549,575 in 2011 and 626,522 in the 2016 census). In 2017, the city's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) reached ZAR 63.8 billion, accounting for 21.1% of the GDP of the North West Province, and 1.28% of the GDP of South Africa. Rustenburg was one of the official host cities of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, being in close proximity to Phokeng, the capital of the Royal Bafokeng Nation, where the Royal Bafokeng Stadium is located. The England national football team also used this as their base camp for the tournament. History Mfecane Before European settlers arrived, the area had been settled by agrarian Setswana-speaking tribes Rustenburg's population is primarily Tswana people. Partially belonging to the Royal Bafokeng Nation, extensive landowners earning royalties from mining operations. The Royal Baf ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sun City, North West
Sun City is a luxury resort and casino, situated in the North West Province of South Africa. It is located between the Elands River and the Pilanesberg, about 140 km northwest of Johannesburg, near the city of Rustenburg. The complex borders the Pilanesberg National Park. It is made up of a number of themed sub-resorts with hotels on each, including the original Sun City Resort, ''The Cabanas'', ''The Cascades'' and the ''Lost City'' (The Palace). History Beginning Sun City was developed by the hotel magnate Sol Kerzner as part of his Sun International group of properties. It was officially opened on 7 December 1979, then located in the Bantustan of Bophuthatswana. As Bophuthatswana had been declared an independent state by South Africa's apartheid government (although unrecognised as such by any other country), it could provide entertainment such as gambling and topless revue shows, which were banned in South Africa. Those factors, as well as its relatively close l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thabazimbi
Thabazimbi is an iron mining town in the Limpopo province of South Africa. The town is at the feet of the Ysterberg and is surrounded by the Witfonteinrand and Boshofberg with the majestic Kransberg in the background. The name Thabazimbi means ''mountain of iron'' because of the large iron ore reef that was discovered in 1919 by J. H. Williams. The mine boasts one of the largest mining shafts in Africa. More than 2 million tons of ore are mined every year and hauled by train to Mittal's iron and steel works. The railway line from Rustenburg reached the area in the 1930s and full scale iron and steel production began. The town was proclaimed in 1953. Kumba Iron Ore, previously Kumba Resources, is now the principal operator of the iron ore mine. The Marakele National Park Marakele National Park is a National Park, part of the Waterberg Biosphere in Limpopo Province, South Africa. Flora and fauna The park is accessible to all passenger vehicles, with the camp and tent sit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pretoria
Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foothills of the Magaliesberg mountains. It has a reputation as an academic city and center of research, being home to the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT), the University of Pretoria (UP), the University of South Africa (UNISA), the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and the Human Sciences Research Council. It also hosts the National Research Foundation (South Africa), National Research Foundation and the South African Bureau of Standards. Pretoria was one of the host cities of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Pretoria is the central part of the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality which was formed by the amalgamation of several former local authorities, including Bronkhorstspruit, Centurion, Gaute ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demographia, the Johannesburg–Pretoria urban area (combined because of strong transport links that make commuting feasible) is the 26th-largest in the world in terms of population, with 14,167,000 inhabitants. It is the provincial capital and largest city of Gauteng, which is the wealthiest province in South Africa. Johannesburg is the seat of the Constitutional Court, the highest court in South Africa. Most of the major South African companies and banks have their head offices in Johannesburg. The city is located in the mineral-rich Witwatersrand range of hills and is the centre of large-scale gold and diamond trade. The city was established in 1886 following the discovery of gold on what had been a farm. Due to the extremely large gold de ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sol Kerzner
Solomon Kerzner, (23 August 1935 – 21 March 2020) was a South African accountant and business magnate. He founded both of South Africa's largest hotel groups, the Southern Sun Hotel Group and Sun International. He was also the Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Kerzner International. During his career in the resort industry he was involved in various political and business controversies. Early life and education Kerzner was born in Durban to Russian Jewish immigrants. His family owned and operated a chain of kosher hotels. Kerzner graduated from the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg with a BCom (Hons) in Accounting, and later qualified as a Chartered Accountant. He then took control of the family company. Career In 1962, he purchased the Astra Hotel in Durban. Following the success of that property, Kerzner built South Africa's first five-star graded hotel in Umhlanga, a town north of Durban – he opened this resort in December 1964 which he named the Beverly Hil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Richards Bay
Richards Bay ( af, Richardsbaai) is a town in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is situated on a 30 square kilometre lagoon of the Mhlatuze River, which makes it one of the country's largest harbours. Richards Bay also has the deepest natural harbour on the African continent. History The town began as a makeshift harbour that was set up by Commodore of the Cape, Sir Markus Eugene Brown, during the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879. In 1902, Cathcart Methven, the harbour engineer for the Natal Government, in his ''Zululand Port Survey'' recognized the potential of Richards Bay as a new harbour for the eastern shore. In 1935 the Richards Bay Game Sanctuary was created to protect the ecology around the lagoon and by 1943 it expanded into Richards Bay Park. The town was laid out on the shores of the lagoon in 1954 and proclaimed a town in 1969. In 1965, the South African Government under Minister of Transport Ben Schoeman decided to build a deep water harbour at Richards Bay. Construction wo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swaziland
Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its north, west, south, and southeast. At no more than north to south and east to west, Eswatini is one of the smallest countries in Africa; despite this, its climate and topography are diverse, ranging from a cool and mountainous highveld to a hot and dry Veld, lowveld. The population is composed primarily of ethnic Swazi people, Swazis. The prevalent language is Swazi language, Swazi (''siSwati'' in native form). The Swazis established their kingdom in the mid-18th century under the leadership of Ngwane III. The country and the Swazi take their names from Mswati II, the 19th-century king under whose rule the country was expanded and unified; its boundaries were drawn up in 1881 in the midst of the Scramble for Africa. After the Second Boer W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Komatipoort
Komatipoort is a town situated at the confluence of the Crocodile and Komati Rivers in Mpumalanga province, South Africa. The town is 8 km from the Crocodile Bridge Gate into the Kruger Park, and just 5 km from the Mozambique border and 65 km from the Eswatini border. It is a small, quiet town within the Lowveld with some attractive tree-lined streets. It is one of the hottest towns in South Africa where temperatures can reach almost 48 °C ( on 12 December 1944) in the height of summer, but also with a perfect winter climate around . History 'Komati' also takes its name from Khoekhoe, one of RSA First languages and once the wealthiest cattle owners on this land, 'koma' meaning cows and 'ti' meaning my. 'Komati' takes its name from the Komati River whose original native Swazi name is Nkomazi, translated as "river of cows". It is where the Crocodile and Komati Rivers meet to flow through the 'Poort' (mountain pass) through the Lebombo Mountains into Mozambiqu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
