Train derails near La Broquerie, clean up underway

Train derails in rural Manitoba Crews clean up after a train derailed outside La Broquerie, Man. on Jan. 11, 2024.

Clean up is underway after a train derailed near La Broquerie, Man. Thursday evening.

Ivan Normandeau, the Reeve for the rural municipality located about an hour southeast of Winnipeg, said the derailment happened Thursday around 7:15 p.m. He said 27 rail cars left the tracks in an area outside the town.

"It just went off the track. Lucky enough for us, the majority of those cars were empty," Normandeau told CTV News. "There was only a few that had a bit of fertilizer and one with a bit of lumber, but the rest are all empty. So it for sure could have been a lot worse."

He said one or two of the cars did have flammable material inside, but did not ignite.

"It was lucky that there wasn't one of those because if that had been the case, then we probably would have had to evacuate the town of La Broquerie last night."

CN Railway told CTV News there were no injuries, leaks, or fires reported, and no risk to the public. The cause of the derailment is under investigation.

Normandeau said local firefighters were on the scene right away to make sure the site was safe before CN staff arrived. He said the clean-up is underway to clear the derailment.

"CN are currently there as we speak, cleaning everything up and probably wanting to open the track as soon as possible," Normandeau said.

CN Railway thanked the local emergency services for their help in responding to the derailment.