A train derailed Wednesday afternoon on the CP Rail line in Mission Flats.
More than a dozen CP Rail cars were turned over near Mission Flats Manor, which is located at 805 Mission Flats Rd. Grain from the train cars was spilled onto the ground.
The City of Kamloops said no hazardous materials were on board the train.
“CP Rail has confirmed there are no hazardous goods on board the derailed train cars,” a tweet from the city stated.
Allan Michener, who works in environmental services for the city, attended the scene. He said grain spilled from the train. He came down to get a visual and determine potential impact to city property on the south end of the track, to which there appeared to be none. He was unsure if there had been any environmental impacts to the Thompson River from the derailment.
Numerous workers in hard hats and safety vests, as well as CP Rail pickup trucks, were at the scene. A lone fire truck attended, but no police or paramedics were present at about 3:30 p.m. KTW has contacted Kamloops RCMP and Kamloops Fire Rescue for comment.
The derailment did not impact any road crossings and was contained to an area of track east of Overlanders Bridge.
The westernmost section of the train was still upright and detached from two derailed boxcars, also separated from about another 14 cars to the east that were derailed off the north end of the track along the Thompson River. A number of train cars were on their sides in a zig-zag pattern.
Cause of the derailment is unknown. However, CP Rail has confirmed no injuries occurred.
In a statement, CP Rail’s manager of media relations and community affairs said: “A CP train carrying grain derailed in the area of Mission Flats in Kamloops this afternoon. There were no injuries. CP has dispatched crews and equipment in response to the incident. The incident is under investigation.”
Various onlookers could be found stopping their vehicles to examine the scene.
“This is crazy,” said J.P. Page, who stopped his motorcycle on Mission Flats Road, when he saw the derailment.
He said he felt he had to stop when he saw the derailment. He said he was worried about impacts of the derailment on the nearby Thompson River.
“What a mess,” added a Mission Flats Manor resident. The man, who did not wish to give his name, told KTW he was out on the deck when he heard the crash.
“Just a loud, screeching, banging noise — bunch of cars banging together,” he said.
Jessica Carleton was driving her vehicle back from the car wash and pulled over to snap some photos.
“It’s pretty crazy,” Carleton said. “I’ve never seen it [a train derailment] in real life before.”
This is the second train derailment in Kamloops in recent months. On April 2, a train derailed on the Canadian National rail line near Kamloops Airport.
