This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-23231470
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Canada train blast search for 40 missing in Lac-Megantic | Canada train blast search for 40 missing in Lac-Megantic |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Dangerous conditions are hampering the search for 40 people missing after a runaway crude oil train blew up in a Quebec town, killing five. | Dangerous conditions are hampering the search for 40 people missing after a runaway crude oil train blew up in a Quebec town, killing five. |
| Fire crews were unable to search Lac-Megantic overnight because dozens of tanker wagons are strewn across the site after the blast early on Saturday. | Fire crews were unable to search Lac-Megantic overnight because dozens of tanker wagons are strewn across the site after the blast early on Saturday. |
| Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the place looked like "a warzone" as he toured the area on Sunday. | Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the place looked like "a warzone" as he toured the area on Sunday. |
| At least 30 buildings were incinerated by the fireball. | At least 30 buildings were incinerated by the fireball. |
| "It's an area that is still extremely risky," police spokesman Benoit Richard said on Monday. "The fire service decided they could not allow us to go there for security reasons. We'll see what we can do today." | "It's an area that is still extremely risky," police spokesman Benoit Richard said on Monday. "The fire service decided they could not allow us to go there for security reasons. We'll see what we can do today." |
| 'Nightmare' | 'Nightmare' |
| Many of those missing were believed to have been drinking at a popular downtown bar when the explosions occurred, he added. | Many of those missing were believed to have been drinking at a popular downtown bar when the explosions occurred, he added. |
| Anne-Julie Huot, 27, said at least 25 people she knows are still missing. | Anne-Julie Huot, 27, said at least 25 people she knows are still missing. |
| "I have a friend who was smoking outside the bar when it happened, and she barely got away, so we can guess what happened to the people inside," she told the Associated Press news agency. "It's like a nightmare." | "I have a friend who was smoking outside the bar when it happened, and she barely got away, so we can guess what happened to the people inside," she told the Associated Press news agency. "It's like a nightmare." |
| One man who escaped from the bar told CBC that he had not been able to sleep because he keeps hearing the screams of his friends. | One man who escaped from the bar told CBC that he had not been able to sleep because he keeps hearing the screams of his friends. |
| None of the dead have been identified, and the five bodies recovered so far, all badly burned, were being sent on Monday to Montreal for identification. | None of the dead have been identified, and the five bodies recovered so far, all badly burned, were being sent on Monday to Montreal for identification. |
| Officials have warned that some of the dead may never be recovered, given the intensity of the fire. | Officials have warned that some of the dead may never be recovered, given the intensity of the fire. |
| Police are encouraging family members of the missing to contact officials to help with the search. | Police are encouraging family members of the missing to contact officials to help with the search. |
| Among buildings in the town destroyed were a grocery store and the town library. | Among buildings in the town destroyed were a grocery store and the town library. |
| Firefighters worked over the weekend to put out remaining fires. | Firefighters worked over the weekend to put out remaining fires. |
| On Monday, they were dousing two oil-filled cars with water and foam in an attempt to keep them from overheating and exploding. | On Monday, they were dousing two oil-filled cars with water and foam in an attempt to keep them from overheating and exploding. |
| 'Unbelievable disaster' | 'Unbelievable disaster' |
| The train had been parked in the village of Nantes, about 7km (four miles) from Lac-Megantic, during an overnight driver shift-change on Friday evening. | |
| Firefighters from Nantes were later called to put out a small fire on the train, but it is not clear if that was linked to what happened next. | |
| Sometime afterward, 73 cars carrying pressurised containers of crude oil became uncoupled from five locomotive engines, gathering speed as they rolled downhill before derailing in the heart of Lac-Megantic, which is about 250km east of Montreal. | |
| An official statement from the train operator said the brakes on the locomotive had somehow completely shutdown after the engineer left the train. | |
| This "may have resulted in the release of air brakes on the locomotive that was holding the train in place", the firm said. | This "may have resulted in the release of air brakes on the locomotive that was holding the train in place", the firm said. |
| The explosion sent a fireball and black smoke into the air, forcing the evacuation of 2,000 people. Of those, 1,500 are unlikely to return to their homes immediately, officials said. | The explosion sent a fireball and black smoke into the air, forcing the evacuation of 2,000 people. Of those, 1,500 are unlikely to return to their homes immediately, officials said. |
| Prime Minister Harper said an "unbelievable disaster" had befallen Lac-Megantic, as he toured the town on Sunday. | Prime Minister Harper said an "unbelievable disaster" had befallen Lac-Megantic, as he toured the town on Sunday. |
| Canada's transportation safety board has retrieved the train's data recorder and a separate device that contains details of the braking system. | Canada's transportation safety board has retrieved the train's data recorder and a separate device that contains details of the braking system. |
| Mr Harper has promised the investigation will help prevent a similar tragedy and that the Canadian government will act on its recommendations. | Mr Harper has promised the investigation will help prevent a similar tragedy and that the Canadian government will act on its recommendations. |
| The train had been travelling from the Bakken Field in North Dakota to a refinery in Saint John, New Brunswick. | The train had been travelling from the Bakken Field in North Dakota to a refinery in Saint John, New Brunswick. |
| The operator, Montreal, Maine & Atlantic, owns more than 800km of track serving Maine, Vermont, Quebec and New Brunswick. | The operator, Montreal, Maine & Atlantic, owns more than 800km of track serving Maine, Vermont, Quebec and New Brunswick. |
| It has seen increased shipments of crude oil from North Dakota and Canada's oil fields. | It has seen increased shipments of crude oil from North Dakota and Canada's oil fields. |
| The Lac-Megantic crash is the fourth crude oil freight train accident under investigation in Canada since the beginning of 2013. | The Lac-Megantic crash is the fourth crude oil freight train accident under investigation in Canada since the beginning of 2013. |
| A picturesque lakeside town that is home to some 6,000 people, Lac-Megantic is close to the US border with Maine. | A picturesque lakeside town that is home to some 6,000 people, Lac-Megantic is close to the US border with Maine. |