Flooding leaves rail line near Roblin teetering

Richard Suidak said it will be a long time before the trains near Roblin get rolling again after a portion of CN Rail track was left hanging following severe flooding in Manitoba this week.

Suidak, a 67-year-old land owner who has a cattle herd, had a front-row seat Tuesday as the earth beneath the railway track, located between Roblin and Deepdale, gave way in front of him.

“I was just watching the waterfall coming over … and then I heard this bang,” he said. “I looked at the water, and I just jumped on my quad, put it in high and got out of there as fast I could.”

He said floodwater filled the valley where the track had been established and said he saw kilometres of water being held back by the earth before it gave way.

“I could just hear the timber and gravel and rocks coming toward me — coming through the bush — but I got out of the way in time,” he said, noting there were a few moments where he feared for his safety.

The flooding left the rail line suspended over the washed-out earth as floodwaters flowed underneath. The now-limp line is a busy one, Suidak said.

“Lots of times there’s seven, eight trains that go by a day,” he said.

After touring the flood zone in Parkland Thursday, Premier Kinew said damage to rail lines in the area was a concern, but said he observed crews from CN Rail working on repairs, the situation being closely monitored.

“That is one of the many things we’ve been trying to stay on top of,” Kinew said, calling it “a very important consideration.”

“When you’re talking about the Parkland, you’re talking about timber. You’re talking about the ag industry, you’re talking about a lot of related sectors, and they rely on rail to get a lot of goods to market.”

The Free Press requested an interview with an operations official from CN Rail but it was not accommodated.

CN said in a statement crews are responding to “substantial flood impacts” on its rail network in the region.

“Teams and equipment are mobilizing to multiple washout locations on the Preeceville, Togo and Gladstone subdivisions to restore service to customers,” said the statement. “Damage reports include previously repaired June washouts in the Swan River and Minitonas area.”

It went on to note that damage to local roads is expected to delay some repairs, but CN is working “closely with municipal officials and our customers to co-ordinate work and set priorities for repairs.”

CN said inspectors will examine and evaluate all infrastructure before service is fully restored to ensure safe operations.

morgan.modjeski@freepress.mb.ca