A Canadian National Railway Co train carrying crude oil has derailed near the Northern Ontario community of Gogama, with the crew reporting a fire but no injuries, the company said on Saturday. A preliminary assessment indicated a bridge over a waterway had been damaged and a number of tank cars were in the waterway after the derailment, Canadian National's second in the region in just three days and third in less than a month.
"Emergency crews are conducting a full site assessment to determine the precise number of cars involved," said CN spokesman Mark Hallman in an e-mail. Local media said the derailment had forced the closure of a nearby highway and photos showing clouds of black smoke were posted online. The railway did not immediately say which type of crude oil the train was carrying, but noted the tank cars were the newer Casualty Prevention Circular 1232 model, which are widely regarded as better protected against damage than older types.
Regulators and operators have criticised earlier DOT-111 cars for being prone to puncture. The CPC 1232's new safety specifications include a thicker tank, top-fitting protection and a pressure relief system. The incident comes after another derailment on March 5 blocked Canadian National's main line in northern Ontario. CN said the latest derailment happened two miles (3.2 km north-west of Gogama, which is some 600 km north of Toronto. It occurred just before 3 am ET/0800 GMT on Saturday and is affecting rail traffic running between Toronto and Winnipeg, Manitoba.
The railway said both westbound and eastbound traffic on the line was obstructed and could be delayed by 24 hours or more. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada said it was deploying a team of investigators and noted the accident was about 37 km from the site of a February 14 accident involving a CN crude oil train.