The Maritime Sikh Society says the body of a young employee who died at a Walmart in Halifax last weekend was found by her mother.
50-car train derailment causes big fire, evacuations in Ohio
Freight train cars continued to burn Saturday sending up heavy smoke following a derailment that prompted an evacuation order and a declaration of a state of emergency in an Ohio village near the Pennsylvania state line.
About 50 cars derailed in East Palestine at about 9 p.m. EST Friday as a train was carrying a variety of products from Madison, Illinois, to Conway, Pennsylvania, rail operator Norfolk Southern said Saturday. There was no immediate information about what caused the derailment. No injuries or damage to structures were reported.
Mayor Trent Conaway of the village of East Palestine declared a state of emergency, citing a 鈥渢rain derailment with hazardous materials.鈥 Air quality was being monitored throughout a one-mile zone that was ordered evacuated and there had been no dangerous readings to report, he said.
Norfolk Southern said the train had more than 100 cars, 20 of which were classified as carrying hazardous materials - defined as cargo that could pose any kind of danger 鈥渋ncluding flammables, combustibles, or environmental risks.鈥
Fire Chief Keith Drabick said officials were most concerned about a shipment of the chemical vinyl chloride, but safety features of the rail car carrying that were still functioning. 鈥淭he rail car that was carrying that is doing its job,鈥 he said.
Vinyl chloride, used to make the polyvinyl chloride hard plastic resin used in a variety of plastic products, is associated with increased risk of liver cancer and other cancers, according to the federal government's National Cancer Institute.
Emergency crews would keep their distance until rail officials told them it was safe to approach, Drabick said.
鈥淲hen they say it's time to go in and put the fire out, my guys will go in and put the fire out,鈥 he said. He said there were also other chemicals in the cars and officials would seek a list from Norfolk Southern and federal authorities.
Firefighters were pulled from the immediate area and unmanned streams were used to protect some areas including businesses that might also have contained materials of concern, officials said. Freezing temperatures in the single digits complicated the response as trucks pumping water froze, Conaway said.
Officials said 68 agencies from three states and a number of counties responded to the derailment, which happened about 51 miles (82 kilometers) northwest of Pittsburgh and within 20 miles (32 kilometers) of the tip of West Virginia's Northern Panhandle.
The National Transportation Safety Board said Saturday that it was 鈥渓aunching a go-team to investigate鈥 the derailment, and board member Michael Graham would 鈥渟erve as spokesperson on scene.鈥
Conaway said surveillance from the air showed 鈥渁n entanglement of cars鈥 with fires still burning and heavy smoke continuing to billow from the scene as officials tried to determine what was in each car from the labels outside. The evacuation order and shelter-in-place warnings would remain in effect until further notice, officials said.
Village officials warned residents that they might hear explosions due to the fire. They said drinking water was safe despite discoloration due to the volume being pumped the fight the blaze. Some runoff had been detected in streams but rail officials were working to stem that and prevent it from going downstream, officials said.
Officials repeatedly urged people not to come to the scene, saying they were endangering not only themselves but emergency responders.
The evacuation area covered 1,500 to 2,000 of the town's 4,800 to 4,900 residents, but it was unknown how many were actually affected, Conaway said. A high school and community center were opened, and the few dozen residents sheltering at the high school included Ann McAnlis, who said a neighbor had texted her about the crash.
鈥淪he took a picture of the glow in the sky from the front porch,鈥 McAnlis told WFMJ-TV. 鈥淭hat's when I knew how substantial this was.鈥
Norfolk Southern opened an assistance center in the village to take information from affected residents.
Elizabeth Parker Sherry said her 19-year-old son was heading to Walmart to pick up a new TV in time for the Super Bowl when he called her outside to see the flames and black smoke billowing toward their home. She said she messaged her mother to get out of her home next to the tracks, but all three of them and her daughter then had to leave her own home as crews went door-to-door to tell people to leave the evacuation zone.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Four people are dead and another is in hospital after a Tesla driving through downtown Toronto at a high rate of speed crashed into a guardrail and struck a concrete pillar on Lake Shore Boulevard.
Prosecutor recommends parole for Menendez brothers in 1989 murder of parents
A Los Angeles prosecutor said on Thursday he would ask a judge to release Erik and Lyle Menendez on parole after nearly 35 years in prison for the shotgun murder of their parents, as new evidence emerged indicating they were sexually abused by their father for years.
Former Sports Illustrated swimsuit model says Trump groped her to show off for Jeffrey Epstein
A former Sports Illustrated swimsuit model鈥痠s alleging鈥痶hat former President Donald Trump groped her in the 1990s, in what she believes was an attempt to show off for Jeffrey鈥疎pstein.
'Never said I was going to close the door on politics forever': Christy Clark on interest in federal leadership run
As Prime Minister Justin Trudeau faces growing pressure from within his own caucus to step aside, former B.C. premier Christy Clark says she is open to returning to politics.
Montreal police say four teenagers suffered stab wounds after an altercation near John F. Kennedy High School in the city's Villeray鈥擲aint-Michel鈥擯arc-Extension borough on Thursday.
More straight couples are calling each other partner. Here's why
Within a year of dating, 31-year-old Siara Rouzer crossed a major relationship milestone. The guy she was seeing was no longer a boyfriend but her partner.
Trudeau announces massive drop in immigration targets as Liberals make major pivot
The federal government is slashing immigration targets to levels that will flatten population growth as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau admits the government did not get the balance right after the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Ottawa Police Service has identified the woman who was stabbed to death at Paul Landry Park on Uplands Drive Thursday morning.
Local Spotlight
A new resident at a Manitoba animal rescue has waddled her way into people's hearts.
Hundreds of people ran to the music of German composer and pianist Beethoven Wednesday night in a unique race in Halifax.
He is a familiar face to residents of a neighbourhood just west of Roncesvalles Avenue.
A meteor lit up our region's sky last night 鈥 with a large fireball shooting across the horizon over Lake Erie at around 7:00 p.m.
Residents of Ottawa's Rideauview neighbourhood say an aggressive wild turkey has become a problem.
A man who lost his life while trying to rescue people from floodwaters, and a 13-year-old boy who saved his family from a dog attack, are among the Nova Scotians who received a medal for bravery Tuesday.
A newly minted Winnipegger is hoping a world record attempt will help bring awareness for the need for more pump track facilities in the city.
A Springfield, Ont. man is being hailed a 'hero' after running into his burning home to save his two infant children.
Hortense Anglin was the oldest graduate to make her way across the platform at York University's Fall Convocation ceremony this week. At the age of 87, she graduated with an Honours degree in Religious Studies.