Train carrying petrochemicals explodes in Canadian town

PanARMENIAN.Net - A train carrying petrochemicals has exploded in a Canadian town, forcing the evacuation of up to 1,000 people, BBC News reported.

The blast sent a fireball and black smoke into the air, destroying dozens of buildings in Lac-Megantic, some 155 miles (250 km) east of Montreal.

The train derailed early on Saturday, July 6; police who worked through the night said several people were missing, but no casualties had yet been confirmed. Firefighters from across the border in the U.S. are helping tackle the blaze.

"When you see the centre of your town almost destroyed, you'll understand that we're asking ourselves how we are going to get through this event," Mayor Colette Roy-Laroche told a televised news briefing.

The train had more than 70 cars filled with petroleum products, some of which exploded, setting fire to nearby homes. It is not clear what caused the explosion.

Some of the train's cargo spilled into the nearby Chaudiere river, said Environment Quebec spokesman Christian Blanchette, adding that communities downstream of Lac-Megantic had been warned to take care if using river water.

A mobile laboratory had been set up to monitor the quality of the air, he added.

The train was reportedly destined for Maine and run by Montreal Maine & Atlantic which owns more than 500 miles of track serving Maine, Vermont, Quebec and New Brunswick.

A lakeside town that is home to some 6,000 people, Lac-Megantic is close to the border with Vermont and just 130 miles north of Maine's capital, Augusta.