5,000 rail ties ablaze at Saint John railway yard

Saint John firefighters are battling a fire at the N.B. Southern Railway yard on the city's west side where an estimated 5,000 railway ties are on fire.

The Saint John Fire Department was called to the railway tie fire at 10:30 p.m. on Sunday.

Mark Gillan, the deputy chief of the Saint John Fire Department, said there are roughly 5,000 of 20,000 rail ties have been destroyed, while the other 15,000 were moved out of the way.

Gillan said the ties have been coated in creosote and other chemicals.

The deputy fire chief said favourable wind conditions means that the 25 homes in the area will not need to be evacuated.

The Department of Environment is monitoring the fire and any smoke and water runoff.

"We are preparing to go door-to-door in those homes just to provide any information," Gillan said.

"So we will be working with Saint John EMO as well as the Department of Environment just to go and speak with folks in those homes just to give them a little bit of peace of mind."

Gillan said he expects the fire department will continue to fight the fire until about 10 a.m. on Monday.

Emergency crews from Grand Bay-Westfield are also helping the Saint John Fire Department.