Lac-Megantic fire, Two more people have been confirmed dead after an explosive train derailment in the town of Lac-Mégantic, Que., bringing the official death toll to three.
The Surêté du Québec reported the additional casualties in a morning press conference in the devastated town, where the fire continues to burn.
Water trucks have also been called in after a leak in a major water pipe near the centre of the town where the area is still too unsafe to attempt to repair the pipe. All of the town’s restaurants have shut down, and residents are asked to fill up bottles at the water trucks, Mayor Colette Roy-Laroche said Saturday night.
More than 550 people have registered with the Red Cross for assistance and meals and roughly 150 people slept at the evacuation centre in a local high school, said Red Cross spokesperson Carl Boisvert.
Evacuee Marjolaine Carrier spent the night outside the centre with her dog Daisy. “My dog was shaking and growling, and I didn’t want to bother the others,” explained this 59-year-old Lac-Mégantic resident, who lives in the Fatima neighborhood, east of downtown.
The neighborhood was evacuated Saturday afternoon because of the poor air quality, and more than 1,000 residents took shelter elsewhere.
Ms. Carrier, who doesn’t own a car, used to shop in the downtown shops that vanished in the explosion of the freight cars. “I don’t know how I will do my errands,” she said, adding that the Eastern township town of 6,000 has no real public transport to speak of.
"Lac-Mégantic is going to need help," she said.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper is planning to visit the Quebec community this afternoon, and called the disaster “shocking and truly devastating” during a news conference in Calgary Saturday. Earlier, the Prime Minister said in a statement that the “people of Lac-Mégantic and surrounding areas can rest assured that our government is monitoring the situation and we stand by ready to provide any assistance requested by the province.”
At least 30 buildings were destroyed in the conflagration that struck the town, including a packed bar, apartments and all the town’s archives.
Many of those missing were indoors, such as the patrons of the Musi-Café bar who filled the building when 73 driverless train cars rolled in out of control at 1:15 a.m. ET Saturday morning.
So far, the Surêté du Québec is refusing to validate reports that anywhere between 50 and 80 people are missing. An officer speaking on condition of anonymity Saturday afternoon told a Globe and Mail reporter he had 50 names on his list. Agence France-Presse put the number at 80.
Those who were on the scene when the immense fireball turned buildings into piles of ash have no doubt the death toll will be big.
"Everybody who didn’t make it back is dead," predicted Frédérique Mailloux, a 38-year-old stay-at-home mom, who said six of her friends are missing. “I have cried every tear in my body.”
Nearly two square kilometres of the downtown were razed, according to Fire Chief Denis Lauzon. “The scene is like one you see after a big forest fire. There are only parts of the buildings left, trees have been completely burnt, there is no grass left, the cars are charred. This is total destruction.”
Earlier, provincial police Lt. Michel Brunet told a news conference: “Our investigators are trying to track down family members, so we can’t give the identity of this (dead) person, but at this time we can confirm one person has died.”
Mr. Brunet said authorities have been told “many” people have been reported missing.
“We’re told some people are missing but they may just be out of town or on vacation,” Mr. Brunet said.
“We’re checking all that, so I can’t tell you at the moment whether there are any victims or people who are injured.”
Relatives in the tourist town of 6,000 full-time residents were already starting to grieve. At a community centre, Jacques Bolduc and Solange Gaudreault emerged after providing a DNA sample to potentially identify their son, Guy Bolduc, a 23-year-old singer who was performing at the bar.
“Our boy wanted so much to live,” Mr. Bolduc told Radio-Canada. “The police told us there is no hope. The train exploded 30 feet from the (Musi-Café) bar.”
With more than 2,000 local residents evacuated, Facebook pages are filled with messages from family members desperately looking for loved ones. Many of those still missing are young men and women who were out enjoying the nightlife on a warm summer night.
The centre of the town lies at the bottom of a hill. The train’s owner, the Montreal Maine & Atlantic Railway, has confirmed the train stopped Friday night at a siding near Nantes, 12 kilometres to the west of Lac-Mégantic, for a routine shift change.
Mr. Lauzon, the fire chief, confirmed late Saturday that fire crews had been called to the train because of a fire that had broken out on board a locomotive. It’s unclear what role the fire may have played in the crash.
The train’s brakes and safety system were functional when the conductor left, according to company spokesman Christophe Journet. The conductor inspected the train and its load before leaving for a local hotel. A replacement crew was slated to come later during the night. Sometime before 1 a.m. ET, the train’s load of 73 cars broke loose and began rolling downhill towards the small town. Before it reached Lac-Mégantic, the locomotive also broke free.
“Why the train’s brakes stopped working, why it was left alone, we don’t know,” said Mr. Journet. Several witnesses said the train was racing when it arrived in town.
Volunteer firefighters kept up a constant stream of lake water to cool freight cars into early Sunday morning to prevent further explosions.
Expressions of support poured in to the city, which were welcomed by the shaken mayor, Ms. Roy-Laroche. “As mayor, when you see the majority of your downtown destroyed like that, you’ll understand we’re asking how we’re going to survive it,” she said. “But we’re getting very strong backing. It’s appreciated.”
Ms. Roy-Laroche noted she did not hear from train company executives.
Christian Paradis, a federal cabinet minister and the local MP, had lunch at the Musi-Café on Friday as he was touring his riding. “This is a huge hit for the city. We are going to need to pull together, roll up our sleeves and rebuild,” he said.
Mr. Paradis is from the nearby Eastern Townships town of Thetford. He came back early Saturday and met people who were crying for lost relatives. “People are just trying to understand what happened.”
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau added: “My thoughts are with all the families who have had to be evacuated, and especially with all those who are searching for their loved ones.”
In addition to the explosions and fire, a large but undetermined amount of fuel also reportedly spilled into the Chaudiere River, said Environment Quebec spokesman Christian Blanchette.
"Right now, there is big smoke in the air, so we have a mobile laboratory here to monitor the quality of the air,” Mr. Blanchette said in an interview.
“We also have a spill on the lake and the river that is concerning us. We have advised the local municipalities downstream to be careful if they take their water from the Chaudiere River.”
Lac-Mégantic is part of Quebec’s picturesque Eastern Townships region, close to the border with Maine and Vermont.
Several neighbouring municipalities, including Sherbrooke and Saint-Georges-de-Beauce, were enlisted to help Lac-Mégantic deal with the disaster.
Emergency services south of the border were also lending a hand.
A fleet of fire trucks were deployed from northern Maine, according to a spokesman at the sheriff’s office in Franklin County.
Sunday, July 7, 2013
Lac-Megantic fire
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