http://www.aljazeera.com/news/americas/2013/07/201376161051859189.html
( Wonder how the brakes on the idled railway train sitting on a hill somehow became disengaged ? Deliberate act on just poor safety controls ? )
Canada train crash | ||
At least five dead and 50 missing after driverless crude oil freighter derails and explodes in lakeside town in Quebec.
Last Modified: 08 Jul 2013 00:04
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A brake failure may have led to a runaway freight train laden with crude oil derailing, exploding and destroying the centre of a Canadian town, according to the train's operator. At least five people are dead and 50 others missing after the driverless train rolled downhill and into the centre of Lac-Megantic, Quebec, before exploding on Saturday. The death toll is expected to rise as rescuers scour the town centre; the crash saw flames shoot into the sky and burn into the night. Montreal, Maine & Atlantic, the train operator, said the locomotive's brakes somehow became disengaged as it was parked at a siding on a hill outside of the town. It did not know how that happened. At least 30 buildings are believed to have been destroyed in the blast, and up to 1,000 people have been moved from the area. An aerial photograph showed widespread devastation in the town centre. The crash happened shortly after 0500 GMT when a freight train derailed in Lac-Megantic, a lakeside town of about 6,000 people near the border with the US state of Maine. Police battled flames and smoke to reach the destroyed area and search for survivors. Al Jazeera's Daniel Lak, reporting from Lac-Megantic, said the explosion had taken place in an area that included popular restaurants and cafes. He said that the train's crew had tied down for a crew change 11km down the track several hours before the train, without a driver, rolled in to town and derailed. Pressurised tanks A witness told a local broadcaster the town centre had been crowded at the time of the derailment. Radio-Canada reported that one building at the centre of the town was a bar popular with young people. "Many parents are worried because they haven't been able to communicate with a member of their family or an acquaintance," Mayor Colette Roy-Laroche told the local channel. The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation said four pressurised tank carriages blew up after the train, which had 73 carriages in all, came off the rails. Residents told reporters they had heard five or six large blasts. Fire officials said they feared more of the tanker carriages were at risk of exploding. About 30 buildings in the town centre were destroyed, some by the initial blast and others by the subsequent fire, they said. Lac-Megantic is part of Quebec's Eastern Townships region, an area popular with tourists that is close to the order with Maine and Vermont. Quebec is a predominantly French-speaking province in the eastern half of Canada. Our correspondent said that some residents and police had said that the oil may be spilling into the aqueducts and the river. | ||
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/train-endured-flames-prior-to-derailment-fire-chief/article13053347/
The locomotive of the 73-car train that devastated a wide swath of Lac-Mégantic, Que., had been ablaze in the hours before it careened off its track and exploded, according to fire officials in the lakeside tourist town and the nearby town of Nantes.
Lac-Mégantic Fire Chief Denis Lauzon and Nantes Fire Chief Patrick Lambert told The Globe and Mail that fire crews had been dispatched to the train around 11:30 p.m. ET Friday when it was stopped in Nantes, about 12 kilometres northwest of Lac-Mégantic, in response to a fire that had broken out on board.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/story/2013/07/07/quebec-train-derailment-explosion-lac-megantic.html
Death toll rises to 5 after Lac-Mégantic train blasts
40 could still be missing after runaway train destroys core of Quebec town
CBC News
Posted: Jul 7, 2013 7:02 AM ET
Last Updated: Jul 7, 2013 12:23 PM ET
Updated
- To report missing people: 819-832-4953 #6005
- For other information: 819-583-2441
- Donations to the Red Cross: 1-800-418-1111
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External Links
- Lac-Mégantic explosions updates from Quebec police [in French]
- Canadian Red Cross
- Unofficial missing and located persons list
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The official death toll has grown to five in Lac-Mégantic, Que., one day after a derailed train carrying crude oil exploded in the town's core, levelling buildings and forcing as many as 2,000 people from their homes.
Quebec provincial police said two more bodies were discovered this morning, in addition to the three that were found overnight in the hardest-hit area in the centre of town.
A spokeswoman for the coroner's office said the bodies were found with advanced burns.
Police say about 40 people have been reported missing by immediate family members in the town of about 6,000 people, located roughly 250 kilometres east of Montreal.
Authorities have cautioned the number of missing could change.
'Today we’re sharing the pain of the people who are devastated.'—Tom Mulcair, NDP leader
Officials fear the death toll will rise in the days to come as police sort through dozens of missing person reports filed by friends and family unable to get in contact with loved ones in the chaos Saturday.
NDP Leader Tom Mulcair arrived on the scene Sunday morning. He said he just met a 12-year-old girl and her mother. He said they were searching for the girl's father, who had been missing since the explosion.
“Today we’re sharing the pain of the people who are devastated,” he said.
"There are still people who have been reported as missing or unaccounted for," said Sûreté du Québec Lt. Michel Brunet. "We can’t give you a number. We know there will be other deaths. We are aware of that, but we can’t give you any numbers at this time."
The bodies have been transported to Montreal for autopsy. Police would not confirm any details about the deceased or where exactly they were located, saying families are still being contacted.
Fire officials confirmed that three out of the five tankers that were burning had been extinguished with foam. Two more are still on fire and are at risk of explosion.
Police said because of that ongoing situation, they haven't been able to access all areas. However, they did say investigators have been on the scene overnight speaking to witnesses.
Brunet said the area is now considered a crime scene.
"In a fire like this one, where there is major destruction and multiple deaths, the Sûreté du Québecmust investigate to see if there are any criminal elements ... so it becomes a crime scene," he said.
Runaway train was parked on hill
The president and CEO of Rail World Inc., the parent company of Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway, said the train was parked uphill of Lac-Mégantic before the incident.
"If brakes aren't properly applied on a train, it's going to run away," Edward Burkhardt told The Canadian Press. "But we think the brakes were properly applied on this train." Burkhardt, who indicated he was mystified by the disaster, said the train was parked because the engineer had finished his run.
Mass evacuations
Many residents who have been forced from their homes are gathering at an evacuation centre set up by the Red Cross at a local school.
Nearly 1,000 people were forced to leave early Saturday morning and another 1,000 were under evacuation orders later that day because of air quality concerns.
"The majority of people have found a place with family and friends," said Myriam Marotte of the Red Cross.
"It's a small community and what we see is a lot of solidarity. People are helping each other."
Last night, 163 people stayed in that emergency shelter. Another 550 registered with the Red Cross so they could be accounted for.
In addition to food and shelter, psychological services are being provided to those who need it in the close-knit community.
"It's difficult for people who still are looking for loved ones," said Marotte. "It's also difficult for people who don't know what is going to happen in the next couple of hours and couple of days. Some people have lost everything."
Dozens still unaccounted for
CBC's Stephen Puddicombe spoke to one woman at that centre who said she hasn't heard from her 17-year-old daughter since the explosion. The girl was in the centre of town, the epicentre of the devastation, when the train derailed at about 1 a.m. Saturday.
An unofficial list of missing persons has been set up online for those still looking for loved ones and friends. Dozens of people once on that list have since been located, according to confirmations submitted online. The list is still more than 200 names long.
Police have not confirmed how many people have been officially reported missing. The Sûreté du Québec said they were still working to double check if some people had been added to the list more than once and cross off those who had been located.
Sgt. Grégory Gomez del Prado told CBC Saturday afternoon it's possible up to 100 people could be missing.
Witnesses described the scene as devastating.
"It's a mess," said Lac-Mégantic fire chief Denis Lauzon, who added that many historic buildings and the town's library and archives were destroyed.
Yves Faucher, who lives in the centre of town, was among the first wave of evacuees.
"I saw though my windows, it became bright like the sun. I thought it was an explosion," he said.
He said he tried to warn people to flee rather than stand around and watch the fire, fearing another explosion.
Witnesses reported hearing between five or six blasts as other tankers filled with oil burst.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has dispatched investigators to the scene.
The fire has been contained, but has not been fully extinguished.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper is expected to be on scene this afternoon.
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60 reported missing as runaway Canada oil train explosion forces town evacuation (VIDEO)
Published time: July 06, 2013 15:53
Edited time: July 06, 2013 17:47
Edited time: July 06, 2013 17:47
Four tanker cars of petroleum exploded in the east Canadian province of Quebec after a train derailed, leaving flames billowing hundreds of feet into the sky. Some 30 buildings were destroyed and 1,000 evacuated from homes. Local radio reports 60 missing.
“It's dreadful,” Lac-Megantic resident Claude Bedard told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. “It's terrible. We've never seen anything like it. The Metro store, Dollarama, everything that was there is gone.”
The 73-tanker train left the tracks shortly after 1 a.m. local time as it was passing through the French-speaking lakeside town of Lac-Megantic, causing a huge fireball to rise into the night sky. Witnesses told Reuters they heard at least five loud blasts. The fire spread to a number of homes. Radio Canada have reported that around 60 people are missing.
The blast was described as "like an atomic bomb," by a local restaurant owner. Bernard Demers had to evacuate the premises, telling AP that everybody had been afraid.
The train "somehow got released," and had no conductor on board, according to the rail company. The convoy of crude oil left the station of its own accord during a shift change in Nantes, west of the affected region.
"We're not sure what happened, but the engineer did everything by the book. He had parked the train and was waiting for his relief," Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway, Inc Vice President Joseph McGonigle said on Saturday.
The 73-tanker train left the tracks shortly after 1 a.m. local time as it was passing through the French-speaking lakeside town of Lac-Megantic, causing a huge fireball to rise into the night sky. Witnesses told Reuters they heard at least five loud blasts. The fire spread to a number of homes. Radio Canada have reported that around 60 people are missing.
The blast was described as "like an atomic bomb," by a local restaurant owner. Bernard Demers had to evacuate the premises, telling AP that everybody had been afraid.
The train "somehow got released," and had no conductor on board, according to the rail company. The convoy of crude oil left the station of its own accord during a shift change in Nantes, west of the affected region.
"We're not sure what happened, but the engineer did everything by the book. He had parked the train and was waiting for his relief," Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway, Inc Vice President Joseph McGonigle said on Saturday.
Approximately 1,000 of the town’s 6,000 residents have been evacuated, with many missing. Police imposed a 1/2-mile (1-km) security zone around the blast's center.
Quebec provincial police Lt. Michel Brunet told a press briefing it is too early to say if there are any casualties prior to Radio Canada's statement.
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