Freight train derails in Selkirk, wheels torn away

A train derailment in Selkirk, Man. on Wednesday evening has left a number of freight cars lying in ditches alongside the track, some with their wheels torn away.

It's the second time this week that a derailment has happened on that stretch of line, the first occurring on Monday, according to Kevin Crooks, who works at Kinetic Machine Works, a business that backs onto the tracks in the northwest corner of the city.

He described the scene from Wednesday as "a train-wreck, literally," saying there are some cars rolled over in the ditch "and a bunch of others all askew, just kind of piled up."

"There's a lot of wheels missing off them," he added.

Cranes were brought out Wednesday to remove some of the cars but an approaching storm forced crews to abandon the effort, Crooks said.

He estimates about 10 cars remain to be cleared at the scene.

There's no official word on what the cars were hauling, though Crooks has heard it was a concrete powder mix. Selkirk Redi Mix Ltd, a supplier of concrete mix has a plant on the other side of the tracks from Kinetic Machine Works.

The rail line is owned by CP Rail and operated by Lake Line Railroad. A CP Rail spokeswoman declined to comment and referred calls to Lake Line Railroad.

No one from Lake Line has yet returned calls from CBC.

Crooks said the ground in the area where the derailments happened is saturated after several days of rain, and he thinks it could have played a part in the crash.

"It's kind of shocking that they had two in a week," he said.

Selkirk Mayor Larry Johannson said he wasn't aware of the derailment until CBC News called.

Selkirk is located about 30 kilometres north of Winnipeg.