2 July 2008
Two Chemical-Filled Rail Cars Fall in River
Lytton British Columbia - Two rail cars loaded with
chemicals remained partially submerged in the Thompson River on Wednesday, as Canadian Pacific Railway cleaned up a
four-car derailment.
The company initially believed 16 cars of the freight train had jumped the tracks near Lytton, B.C., after being hit by a rock slide
just north of the tiny Fraser Canyon community on Tuesday evening. One tanker was in the river.
"We now have four cars derailed as a consequence of the landslide," CPR spokesman Mike LoVecchio said Wednesday, following an
assessment by clean-up crews. "One is upright on the track, one car is on the river embankment below the track, and
two cars are partially submerged in the Thompson River."
Both of the submerged cars were carrying glycol, a substance used in antifreeze, but LoVecchio said both are double-walled
tankers and neither appeared to be leaking.
"We continue to be in touch with the Village of Lytton and the Lytton First Nation and will work with them going forward,"
said LoVecchio.
He said the priority is to work with the community while equipment is staged and a recovery plan is created, so that all parts of the
process are in place before work begins, possibly later on Wednesday.
"There is no estimate at this time for recovery, nor for the line reopening," he said.
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