CN Railway Derailments, Other Accidents and Incidents Prepared by Railroaded – Updated March 7, 2015 This is a small sample of the thousands of CN derailments, spills, fires and other accidents. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada, Railway Association of Canada and CN employees indicate that CN intentionally does not report many of its derailments and other accidents. March 7, 2015. N of Sudbury, Ontario. 30 to 40 CN tank cars loaded with crude oil fell off CN’s mainline tracks about 100 km N of Sudbury, and at least 5 tumbled into a local waterway and caught fire. Residents in nearby Gogama have been told to stay indoors, and Mattagami First Nations members have been told to avoid drinking water from the community source. The local fire department recommended anybody with breathing problems to stay indoors until further notice due to the smoke from the fire. An undisclosed volume of crude oil spilled into local waterways. A section of the major highway connecting Timmins with southern Ontario was closed. Via Rail cancelled passenger service on the mainline. ( CTV News March 7/15) March 5, 2015. E of Hornepayne, Ontario. 16 CN tank cars loaded with flammable crude oil or gasoline residue derailed on CN’s mainline between Toronto and Winnipeg, shutting the line down in both directions for an undetermined period of time. ( Reuters March 5/15 & other sources) Feb 25, 2015. Butler County, Pennsylvania. 27 CN cars loaded with iron ore came off the tracks about 35 miles north of Pittsburgh. The rail line had to be closed for at least 2 days while derailed cars and loads were cleaned off the tracks, and the damaged tracks repaired. ( Daily Journal Feb 27/15) Feb 25, 2015. NW of Duluth, Minnesota. 13 of 107 CN cars derailed, 3 of which were loaded with naphthalene, a hazardous material best known as the active ingredient in mothballs. Other derailed cars were loaded with plastic pellets. Local emergency officials were concerned with the potential release of naphthalene when it was being off-loaded from the damaged cars. ( Star Tribune Feb 25/15) Feb 15, 2015. Near Conklin, Alberta. 4 CN tank cars loaded with crude oil derailed at the Windell Yard siding. Although a CN spokesperson said local emergency services were advised of the accident, local media determined no local emergency services were contacted. ( Lac La Biche Post March 5/15) Feb 14, 2015. Near Timmins, Ontario. 29 of 100 tank cars loaded with crude oil derailed on CN’s mainline about 80 km south of Timmins late February 14, and 7 cars were still burning 4 days later. Firefighting and environmental crews and equipment were sent to the remote site. As a result of the major derailment, which blocked the mainline for an undisclosed length of time, Via Rail was forced to cancel all passenger service between Toronto and Winnipeg. Via had to make alternate arrangements for their customers. More than 1 million litres of crude oil spilled - the extent of environmental damage was not disclosed. (Globe and Mail Feb 15/15, CBC News March 4/15) Feb 14, 2015. Jasper, Alberta. Several CN cars fell off the tracks in a Jasper rail yard. CN provided no details to the media, although they did park a train to obscure the view 1 of the accident from the Jasper townsite. CN crews were apparently still working at the derailment site 3 days following the accident. ( Fitzhugh Feb 25/15) Jan 31, 2015. Richmond Hill, Ontario. 2 CN cars derailed – one was carrying steel, the other was loaded with sulphuric acid, a dangerous good. A nearby road was closed off to traffic for an undetermined length of time. ( Hamilton Spectator Jan 31/15, CBC News Jan 31/15) Jan 21, 2015. Downtown Winnipeg, Manitoba. 9 CN cars derailed in downtown Winnipeg during rush hour. 7 of the cars were loaded with sand and 2 were full of residue. ( Reuters Jan 21/15) Jan 9, 2015. Thunder Bay, Ontario. 4 empty CN grain cars fell off the tracks inside a rail yard. There were damages to the track that required repair. ( Chronicle Journal Jan 10/15) Jan 9, 2015. Mont-Joli region, Quebec. A CN freight train car loaded with wood chips derailed, forcing a Via Rail passenger train to stop in Mont-Joli. The Via train left Montreal and was headed for Halifax. 91 Via passengers waited between 5 and 7 hours before boarding buses to continue to their destinations. ( CBC News Jan 10/15, Montreal Gazette Jan 10/15) Jan 7, 2015. Near Jarrow, Alberta. 23 of 114 CN cars derailed early this morning between Kinsella and Irma, Alberta. One of the derailed cars spilled an undisclosed volume of liquid adhesive (glue). (Adhesives are dangerous because they are toxic and flammable.) Other derailed cars were full of gasoline and ethanol residue. CN’s main track between Edmonton and Winnipeg was closed down, as was the main highway – Highway 14. The TSB is investigating the major derailment. The extent of environmental damage from the spilled glue is not known. Alberta had the highest number of main line derailments in Canada last year and during the past 5 years. ( Global News Jan 7/15, Prince George Citizen Jan 7/15, CBC News Jan 7/15) Dec 29, 2014. North of Niton Junction, Alberta. 10 CN cars loaded with stone derailed and spilled their cargo about 160 km west of Edmonton, Alberta. ( CTV News Dec 30/14) Dec 21, 2014. Squamish, British Columbia. Between 2 and 4 CN cars derailed and flipped over, spilling their contents. The derailment occurred near the Culliton Creek Bridge at the end of Paradise Valley Road. ( Squamish Chief Dec 23/14) Dec 13, 2014. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. 5 CN cars filled with grain derailed near the 11 th Street bypass. ( Global News Dec 13/14) Dec 12, 2014. Near Raymore, Saskatchewan. 35 CN freight cars, including one loaded with isopropanol alcohol (a dangerous good), fell off the tracks. 22 cars were carrying automobiles which were damaged. Other derailed cars were carrying steel, canned goods and mineral oil. CN’s main line was closed indefinitely. The major derailment occurred about 3 km west of Raymore. ( CBC News Dec 12/14, CJME Dec 12/14, Regina Leader Post Dec 13/14) 2 Dec 2, 2014. Near Brereton Lake, Manitoba. 12 CN cars derailed in Whiteshell Provincial Park about 115km east of Winnipeg. It took CN about 16 hours to clean up the derailment and restore service. ( Global News Dec 3/14) Nov 28, 2014. Sudbury, Ontario. CN tanker car loaded with highly corrosive sulphuric acid flipped off the tracks on Vale Canada Ltd. property. Vale captures sulphur dioxide at its smelter and converts it into sulphuric acid for sale. ( Sudbury Star Dec 2/14) Nov 17, 2014. Winnipeg, Manitoba. Two locomotives collided near CN’s Symington Yard, injuring an engineer who was sent to the hospital. No further details. ( Winnipeg Free Press Nov 17/14) Nov 15, 2014. East of Prince Rupert, British Columbia. 26 intermodal CN cars and one locomotive derailed. The derailed cars carried distiller grain, lumber, pulp and rolls of paper. The derailment disrupted CN operations for about 24 hours. ( BC Local News Nov 17/14) Nov 8, 2014. Moncton, New Brunswick. 16 cars derailed while entering CN’s Gordon Yard – 10 were loaded with unrefined crude oil and 6 cars for transporting vehicles were empty. Over 150 litres of crude oil spilled from one of the derailed tank cars. The Moncton Fire Chief complained that his department was not contacted by CN about the derailment even though 10 of the cars carried flammable product. A contractor hired by CN to transfer oil from the damaged car to a spare car contacted the fire department more than 7 hours after the derailment. It took about 2 days to clean up the tracks. (CBC News Nov 8/14, CBC News Nov 10/14) Oct 26, 2014. North of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. 9 CN cars derailed about 130 km north of Sault Ste. Marie. One of the derailed cars spilled an undisclosed volume of diesel fuel. It is not known whether any of the fuel spilled into nearby waterbodies. Another one of the derailed cars was loaded with sulphuric acid. It took over 3 weeks to clean up the derailment site, including mobile vacuum units trying to remove spilled diesel fuel. (Soo Today Oct 26/14, Soo Today Nov 10/14) Oct 21, 2014. Calgary, Alberta. 3 CN cars derailed at a southeast Calgary intersection, closing 52 nd Street to vehicular traffic in both directions. One derailed car was loaded with oil, one with automobiles, and the 3 rd car was empty. ( Calgary Herald Oct 21/14) Oct 7, 2014. Near Clair and Wadena, Saskatchewan. 26 of 100 CN rail cars derailed. 6 of the derailed cars were loaded with hazardous goods, 4 with either hydrochloric acid or caustic soda and 2 with petroleum distillate. An explosion and fire resulted from an undisclosed volume of spilled petroleum distillate from 2 cars. Huge plumes of thick, heavy, black smoke and fire at least 30m high were reported. Local officials were concerned about the toxic smoke, and kept people 8 kilometres away from the scene. 50 people from Clair and others from farm homes in the area were evacuated and school students in Wadena were kept indoors during the day. The extent of environmental damage was not disclosed. ( CBC News Oct 7/14, CTV News Oct 7/14) Sept 26, 2014. Near Wildwood, Alberta. About 15 CN cars loaded with coal fell off the tracks, spilling coal all over the rail right-of-way.