(The Canadian Press circulated the following story on September 2.)
VANCOUVER — A spokesman for Canadian National Railway defended the company yesterday after the seventh derailment in one month, saying the company has the best accident record, compared with other rail lines in North America.
“Our safety performance compares favourably with the rest of the industry,” Mark Hallman said.
He was commenting after a train derailed Wednesday night between Chilliwack and Abbotsford, B.C., and 10 cars spilled dry sulphur near the Fraser River.
The amount of sulphur dumped was minimal, Mr. Hallman said, adding CN workers had cleared the track by yesterday afternoon.
Paul Ross, a spokesman with Environment Canada, said officials were on site to ensure no sulphur would make it into the river.