Via passengers return to Winnipeg after train derailment

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/07/2018 (2794 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Passengers who left Winnipeg on a northbound train to The Pas overnight Thursday returned to Manitoba’s capital less than 24 hours later, after a Via Rail train derailed one stop short of its destination.

Train 693 derailed 37 kilometres north of Hudson Bay, Sask., shortly after 3 a.m. Thursday, the Crown corporation rail company said. There were five crew members and 16 passengers on board at the time.

Via Rail spokeswoman Marie-Anna Murat said two locomotives and the baggage car in the eight-unit train ended up on their sides.

“All (five) passenger cars remained upright,” she said.

There were no severe injuries, but initial reports from Via Rail indicated two crew members suffered minor injuries. The company said everyone aboard the train during the derailment was taken to the Hudson Bay Health Care Facility in the nearby Saskatchewan town to be assessed and treated as needed. They were all discharged, Via Rail said.

The company said they are offering trauma counselling to those on board during the accident, and will provide accommodation for the travellers in Winnipeg until they get to their final destination.

Via Rail also set up a hotline (1-877-747-0707) for family members in search of information.

An employee working the phone line said passengers got on a bus to travel back to Winnipeg shortly after 10 a.m., and stopped for lunch in Dauphin. They were expected to arrive at Union Station in Winnipeg before 8 p.m., she said over the phone Thursday afternoon.

The train was going about 50 km/h when the accident happened, Transportation Safety Board of Canada spokesman Alexandre Fournier said. He said the train derailed when it hit a section of the track that had been washed out.

TSBC investigators were deployed to the scene Thursday morning. Ambulances from three different communities in Saskatchewan were also called, said Doug Dahl, communications officer for Saskatchewan Health Authority.

The company couldn’t confirm a washout, Murat said.

“I know there was flooding in the area, but the accident is under investigation and as of now we don’t know the cause. The area is very remote,” she said.

Passenger rail service between Winnipeg and the northern Manitoba community of Gillam has been suspended until further notice.

— with files from The Canadian Press

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @macintoshmaggie