What appears to be a troubling incident has reportedly occurred at ArcelorMittal Liberia involving one of its rail workers, Edward Kolliemen, during a rail inspection accident on Monday, December 15, 2025. This incident is said to have renewed scrutiny of rail safety practices, accident reporting, and regulatory oversight along Liberia’s busiest mining corridor
Kolliemen remains in a life-threatening condition from injuries caused by the rail inspection accident. Kolliemen is believed to be in his 50s and works as a wagon inspector, a role that requires him to ensure wagons are properly loaded before departing the loading station at the mine. The accident occurred during an inbound inspection of wagons.
According to an Incident Alert, Kolliemen was inspecting wagons between locomotives 101 and 108 when the locomotive operator requested clearance to move. Both Mr. Kolliemen and his supervisor reportedly gave an “all clear” signal.
“A single radio was reportedly assigned to both men, who were inspecting the wagons from opposite directions. As the wagons began moving, Mr. Kolliemen reportedly attempted to hold onto them to expedite the inspection process. He slipped, became trapped between the wagons, and sustained catastrophic injuries resulting in the traumatic amputation of his right hand and right leg. He was reportedly wearing rain boots at the time of the incident,” the Incident Alert disclosed.
ArcelorMittal Liberia’s MedAir emergency response team rescued Kolliemen at the scene, administered immediate treatment, and airlifted him by helicopter to the company hospital in Yekepa. He was taken into surgery, placed on blood transfusion, and remains under intensive medical care. The consequences are devastating and permanent. The incident underscores the human cost of rail operations, where routine tasks can turn fatal for workers performing physical roles in high-risk environments.
The Director of Rail at the Ministry of Transport, Mr. Amos K. Tuah, said his office has not been officially informed by ArcelorMittal Liberia about the incident. As a mining company, it does not have the same experience as a specialized rail operator. Incidents like this illustrate the need for an independent rail operator to oversee Liberia’s railroads.
The incident comes at a time when broader efforts are being made to reform rail governance through executive orders establishing the National Rail Authority, aimed at separating rail regulation from private commercial interests and transitioning the country toward an independent rail operator model.
These executive actions are intended to centralize oversight, enforce uniform safety and operational standards, and ensure that accidents are promptly reported, independently reviewed, and addressed through national regulatory mechanisms.
However, the reform effort has faced persistent resistance from ArcelorMittal Liberia, which has sought to retain control over rail policy, operations, and access, despite the government’s stated objective of opening the rail system to multiple users under independent oversight. This resistance is particularly striking given the company’s own acknowledgment in a recent annual report that it has sustained serious financial losses attributed to poor rail management. The admission sits alongside a troubling safety record, including at least two previous fatalities that occurred while the company was operating the rail system.
The Rail System Operating Principles (RSOP) are intended to function as a technical and safety framework governing how trains operate on shared rail infrastructure. RSOP is meant to establish clear rules for inspections, communication protocols, movement authority, and emergency response under the supervision of an independent regulator. The objective is to prevent safety decisions from being driven by production pressures and to ensure consistent standards apply to all rail users.
As ArclelorMittal Liberia delays publicly addressing organizational factors related to the incident, the circumstances described in the incident alert point to systemic risks, including limited communication tools during inspections, proximity of workers to moving wagons, and operational practices that may prioritize speed over safety.
