FORT FRANCES – Canadian National Railway is removing non-toxic oil from the water after a railway bridge collapsed near Fort Frances on Wednesday at around 5:55 p.m.
Photos posted on social media Wednesday afternoon show a pile of twisted metal and a damaged railway track on the Rainy River Rail Lift Bridge, more commonly known as the Five-Mile Bridge.
"No trains were involved in the incident and there are no reports of injuries," CN said in a statement.
"The bridge remains closed until further notice. Environmental crews have contained and are recovering a release of biodegradable, non-toxic hydraulic oil related to the incident. CN wishes to thank local first responders for their assistance.”
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada also provided a statement.
“The TSB was notified at 17:55 local time on Wednesday that a railroad bridge collapsed at mileage 84 of the Canadian National Fort Frances Subdivision.
“No injuries have been reported. We have not deployed investigators to the scene and the cause is still under investigation as we gather more information,” the TSB said in a statement.
Fort Frances fire Chief Dave Robertson said the town has activated a low level of its emergency management control group to "take that first step in assessing the situation as a group, making sure the communications are clear between all groups.
“And, do we need to take next more robust actions involving more stakeholders possibly contacting other factions like police and whatnot?
Robertson said the first thing firefighters needed to determine was if anyone was in the water in proximity to the area where the bridge went down.
When they learned no one was injured, Robertson and three firefighters helped provide emergency lighting for the bridge and the scene “to warn boaters as we approached twilight and compromised daylight.
“We didn't want boaters in this kind of dangerous hot zone around a structure that now has questionable integrity. There may have been debris in the water,” he said.
Robertson said the bridge would normally be crossed by two to three trains per day.
CN has not said if those trains can be rerouted.
