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Canadian National Rail defends criticism

Officials of Canadian National Railway are defending the company’s safety record, communication strategy, and emergency response planning.

Officials of Canadian National Railway (CN) are defending the company’s safety record, communication strategy, and emergency response planning.

Jim Feeny, director of public and government affairs for CN, said last week that the company understands the concerns expressed by first responders along its North Line.

“We are in regular communication with them, and offer counsel and training,” Feeny said. “We recognize that any response to an emergency by a local department will be aligned with their training and capabilities. Concurrently, CN will be assembling and bringing in the specialized resources needed to deal with any emergency.”

Fire chiefs within the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako have criticized CN for not involving them in the company’s emergency response planning. Yet according to Feeny, that involvement wasn’t necessary.

“Local fire chiefs were not consulted in the preparation of CN’s emergency response plan,” he said. “The document describes the CN protocols and procedures used by CN staff to respond to emergencies, and is provided to external responders to give them insight into CN emergency response processes.”

Several northern communities have also suggested that CN’s emergency specialists are stationed too far away to provide effective assistance in the event of a derailment involving dangerous goods. Feeny, however, feels adequate resources are available.

“Canadian National Railway has its own emergency response specialists, located across its North American network,” he explained. “In the case of an emergency, CN will bring both internal and external specialists from anywhere they are located, if they are needed for a particular problem. It’s not possible to speculate on how long it would take to bring people in. This would depend on where from, and where to. CN will bring the right people in, from anywhere.

“CN will fulfil its legal obligations, and is fully committed to working with any affected community in a fair and open manner to address their concerns,” he concluded.

Claude Mongeau, CN’s president and chief executive pointed out that the vast majority of rail cars containing hazardous materials arrive at their destinations without incident.

“A full 99.998 per cent of CN and rail industry movements of dangerous goods – many of which are essential to the North American economy – arrive at their destination without a release caused by accident,” said Claude Mongeau, CN’s president and chief executive.

“That being said, CN understands that municipalities feel they need more transparency and information from railways about the dangerous commodities moving through their communities. And that’s why we a launched a comprehensive outreach program last fall with communities along our network in Canada, and are now launching a similar program this year in the United States.”