Train Derailment, Edgewater BC

DISCLAIMER: Information provided is based on reports received by Emergency Management B.C. Information provided is considered to be current at the time of posting, but is subject to change as new information becomes available.

Incident Description

Incident Date	October 10, 2020
Name	Train Derailment, Edgewater B.C. (DGIR: 202488)
Source	Train Derailment
Nearest Community	Edgewater, B.C.
Spilled Content	Coal
Who is involved?	Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), Interior Health Authority, First Nations Health Authority, B.C. Ministry of Environment & Climate Change Strategy (ENV)

 

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Response Phase Detail

The responsible person or spiller is legally required to clean-up or manage the clean-up of a spill. In incidents where the responsible person is unknown, unable or unwilling to manage the clean up, the Ministry of Environment & Climate Change Strategy (ENV) may assume the role. The updates below reflect the Ministry’s oversight of the spillers’ actions; details describe the spill response phase, only, and not the complete lifecycle of the spill. See More Information for other related reports. 

Updates are in reverse chronological order, with the most recent at the top. Industry-specific language may be explained in the Glossary of Terms (PDF).

Most Recent Update

October 12, 2020 - 8:00 pm

On the evening of October 10, 2020, at approximately 10:45 pm, 17 train cars derailed and 2 train cars flipped over near the community of Edgewater. The responsible person, Canadian Pacific Railways (CPR), confirmed that the train cars were carrying coal. An unknown quantity of the spilled product has entered into the Columbia River. 

Environmental contractors have been retained to undertake water sampling upstream and downstream of the impact site and to assist in mitigation measures of the incident site, including silt fencing and containment boom. Salvage and cleanup operations are ongoing. 

Interior Health Authority, First Nations Health Authority and local First Nations have been notified of the incident.

An Environmental Emergency Response Officer (EERO) with the B.C. Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy (ENV) is continuing to work closely with partners to monitor the incident. 

Further updates will be provided as more information becomes available.

(Spilled coal along the Columbia River embankment on October 11, 2020).