Lord Roberts, Riverview residents raise stink over mystery smell

A city councillor is calling for more transparency in the aftermath of train derailments after a strong odour from a railyard sparked alarm.

Coun. Sherri Rollins (Fort Rouge–East Fort Garry) shared an open letter Thursday about a noxious odour affecting residents in the Lord Roberts and Riverview neighbourhoods.

Rollins fielded an influx of queries Thursday; local residents asked what was causing the smell and whether it was toxic, she said.

It seems the smell came from CN Rail’s yard in Fort Rouge. A train derailment happened in the area on Dec. 28. Crews have been cleaning up since.

The smell isn’t a threat to public safety, and no dangerous goods are involved, said Thomas Bateman, CN’s public affairs manager.

Staff members continue to clean up after the train derailment, which involved railcars containing undiluted bitumen.

“Over the coming days, neighbours may notice steam or notice unusual odours as staff empty and clean the remaining railcars prior to their safe removal and transport,” Bateman wrote in a statement.

Environmental protection measures such as monitoring are in place, he added.

“CN apologizes for the inconvenience caused by this incident,” Bateman wrote.

Elementary schools in the area evacuated late Thursday morning “out of an abundance of caution,” Winnipeg School Division spokesperson Jillian Recksiedler said.

Residents blamed multiple construction sites and Winnipeg Transit amid the lack of information.

“I had two neighbourhoods… that thought there was a gas leak,” Rollins said. “There’s got to be some consideration for the local neighbourhood when there’s a derailment.

“That consideration is disclosure of what went on, what is being cleaned up and what the substances are that are being cleaned up.”

She said she called Transport Canada’s emergency line and Manitoba’s environmental accident reporting line.

On Friday, Rollins wrote a letter to federal and provincial transportation and environment ministers.

“Obtaining basic information to reassure and protect the public should not be this difficult,” the letter reads. “Proactive disclosure must be the standard when remediation work encounters materials that pose, or reasonably appear to pose, a public health concern.”

Transport Canada did not answer questions by end of day Friday. A provincial minister wasn’t made available by the end of the day.

“I want assurances,” Rollins said. “They need to be up on the time of proactive disclosure, public health notifications.

“In Winnipeg, when we’re having a conversation about rail relocation — the derailment context really does emphasize and underline both of those two things that they’re grossly missing.”

A rail relocation feasibility study will consider both the recent derailment in South Osborne and the need for more public notifications following such incidents, said Lloyd Axworthy, who’s leading the two-year study.

He plans to report to the province with findings next week.

Ottawa would oversee rail-related public notifications, but Manitoba would have “the leverage to raise these issues,” Axworthy said.

Meanwhile, several workers and residents in South Osborne Friday were unsure of what they smelled Thursday.

“I’ve been working here like seven to eight months. It was my first time that I experienced this kind of smell,” Umme Hafsa said inside Clubhouse Pizza. “I was worried.”

Ten rail cars derailed last month with no dangerous goods involved, CN Rail said after the incident. It didn’t detail what was inside the affected cars.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com