FEBRUARY 15, 2015
TIMMINS, ONTARIO,
CANADA
No injuries have
been reported after a crude oil train derailed and caught fire near Timmins,
Ont. late Saturday night.
The eastbound CN
Rail train came off the tracks approximately 80 kilometres (50 miles) south of
Timmins shortly before midnight, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada said
Sunday in a statement.
The derailment
occurred on a stretch of rail between Gogama and Foleyet, in an extremely
remote area that cannot be accessed by road, provincial police said.
"There is a
fire at the scene, but the derailment occurred in a snow-covered, remote wooded
area and there are no reports of injuries or community impacts," CN Rail
spokesperson Patrick Waldron said in an email to news media.
Emergency crews will
conduct a full site assessment to determine whether any oil was spilled.
Waldron said that 29
of the train's 100 cars were involved in the incident. Seven of the cars were
affected by the fire.
The cause of the
derailment is under investigation, but Waldron said the train was fully
inspected four times and passed a safety detector approximately 30 kilometres
(18.6 miles) before the incident with no issues identified.
The track was
visually inspected on Saturday morning.
As a result of the
derailment, which is still blocking a major rail line, Via Rail has cancelled
all trains between Toronto and Winnipeg. Via will provide alternate
transportation to customers already en route or scheduled to travel today.
