'Anything can happen': Guernsey, Sask. residents want answers after 2nd derailment
CBC News | Posted: February 7, 2020 9:24 PM | Last Updated: February 7, 2020
Evacuees allowed to return home as of 4 p.m. CST Friday
Following a fiery train derailment, Maria Pavelich waited anxiously in a hotel room for news of when she could go back to Guernsey, Sask.
On Thursday, Pavelich and around 80 other people were forced from their homes in the hamlet after a CP Rail train carrying crude oil derailed and caught on fire.
Thick, black smoke poured into the air, making it impossible to stay in the area.
Sitting in a hotel room in the nearby town of Lanigan on Friday morning, Pavelich said she was worried about her property and the pets she had to leave behind — she was also afraid of what the future may bring.
This is the second CP Rail derailment in close proximity in two months and she wants reassurance that it won't happen again.
"It's always going to be a worry," said Pavelich.
"You're watching to make sure [trains are] going to stay on the track. That's crazy."
Evacuees return home
On Friday, evacuees were notified that they could return home at 4 p.m. CST.
It's still not clear what caused the train to leave the track and crash. Investigators from the Transportation Safety Board have arrived. CP says crews are working with adjacent landowners as they clean up and restore the area.
On Thursday, federal Minister of Transportation Marc Garneau announced a slowdown for all trains across the country carrying dangerous goods.
The order, which will take effect Friday, Feb. 7 at midnight, will require trains travelling through metropolitan areas to limit their speed to a maximum of 32 km/h, and 40 km/h everywhere else.
However, Pavelich isn't convinced a nationwide slowdown is the answer.
"Anything can happen," she said.
"It could be something wrong with the the railroad itself, it could be the wheels freezing. It could be a stone on the track."
The fact that two trains have derailed in the area — the first crashed on Dec. 9, 2019 — has the local rumour mill churning. Speculation regarding improper rail maintenance, frozen wheels and even sabotage are floating out in the air.
Pavelich says it would be helpful to have more information.
"The less we know, the more our imaginations take over," she said.
Trains begin running again
Reeve Jack Gibney said while everyone in the village found a place to stay, either with family or in a hotel, the news that people could return home brought widespread relief.
"They were all clapping their hands and ready to go home," Gibney said, noting the pizza lunch CP Rail bought for evacuees helped spirits, too.
"We had a good response," he said. "CP has been with us all day to answer to all of these frustrations with the residents and I think it's made a world of difference."
On Friday evening, CP Rail said the fire at the site had been fully contained and the rail line was re-opened.
Gibney noted that any costs associated with the derailment would be funnelled through Guernsey's RM office and sent as one claim to CP Rail.
"They're making it right for us," he said.