FIELD, B.C. – The main power feed to Field, British Columbia is up and running again after residents were on backup juice for nearly four days due to a train derailment last week west of the small community.
BC Hydro confirmed repairs to the main supply were completed Tuesday (May 3) for its 174 customers in the area approximately 25 kilometres west of Lake Louise.
“I’m pleased to let you know that we have completed the repairs to our infrastructure this [Tuesday] afternoon and your regular power supply has been restored,” said Mary Anne Coules, BC Hydro's community relations manager, in an email to Field residents.
Tuesday was the earliest the hydro company could access the site for repairs following a train jumping tracks and taking out a feed to the community approximately 10 kilometres west on Friday (April 29).
No injuries and no spills were reported by Canadian Pacific (CP) Railway after a freight train derailed four cars in Yoho National Park.
The cause is under investigation.
The rail line has since reopened.
"CP reopened the rail line this morning after all repairs and safety inspections were completed," wrote CP spokesperson, Salem Woodrow, in an email.
The community has seen multiple train derailments in recent years.
The most notable was in 2019 when three people died after the train left the tracks at Spiral Tunnels, east of Field. The RCMP launched a criminal investigation and the Transportation Safety Board released its findings in March that was critical of CP Rail due to safety deficiencies contributing to the accident including lack of experience and training, degradation of air brake systems in extreme cold temperatures of up to -28 C and failure to secure hand brakes.
CP disagreed with TSB's findings.
In March 2021, a train derailed in Field near the East 2nd Street crossing that had no injuries. In January 2021, a train carrying grain derailed about 6.5 kms west of Field and also temporarily knocked out power to the town. There were no injuries at that derailment.
Since 2000, there have been at least 18 grizzly bears killed on train tracks in Banff and Yoho national parks. Parks Canada stated last year that at least 10 wolves had been killed on train tracks in the past decade.
In January 2021, the Office of the Auditor General of Canada released a follow-up to an audit on rail safety.
The 32-page report was following up on selected recommendations from their 2013 report on ways to improve rail safety following the Lac-Megantic, Quebec derailment that killed 47 people.
According to the report, there were 1,245 accidents involving trains in 2019. Of those, 694 – 56 per cent – were derailments. There were 72 deaths involving trains in 2019, per the report.
The report highlighted concerns and said the past 14 years have led to several recommendations to Transport Canada to look at the “effectiveness of railway companies’ safety management systems.”
