Lac-Megantic residents file suit against railroad co.
Two residents of Lac-Megantic, Quebec, have initiated a class-action lawsuit against the Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway after an oil train derailed and caused an explosion that killed at least 50 people.
The Portland Press Herald reported Yannick Gagne and Guy Ouellet are requesting class-action status in Quebec Superior Court and are seeking unspecified damages from the Hermon-based railroad company. Ouellet’s partner Diane Bizier died in the explosion. Gagne owns the Musi-Cafe, which was crowded with people when it was destroyed by the crash.
An attorney in the case told the paper the class-action suit, if allowed to move forward, could be among the largest claims filed in Canada’s history. That’s in part because an amended motion filed Wednesday also names Irving Oil, World Fuel Services, Dakota Plains Holdings and others as defendants for their parts in extracting or transporting the oil that caught fire after the overnight train derailment.
The paper reported an Irving Oil spokesman said it did not own or control the crude oil involved in the crash at any time. Representatives from the other companies named as defendants did not respond to requests for comment
Edward Burkhardt, chairman of the railroad company, told reporters earlier this week that the engineer who parked the train uphill from the small Quebec town failed to set sufficient hand brakes, allowing the train to roll downhill unattended.
Chalmers “Chop” Hardenburgh, who publishes regional trade publication Atlantic Northeast Rails & Ports, told the paper that the company will likely run out of money in a matter of weeks if it is not able to resume regular freight service. That could drive the railroad company to seek a buyer before it is driven to file for bankruptcy, Hardenburgh said. MM&A, which laid off 79 of its 179 workers earlier this week due to the delay in service, has been unable to work on its tracks through Lac-Megantic as the site remains under investigation as a crime scene.
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