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Cleanup of train derailment site in New Brunswick nears completion

Derailed train cars burn in Plaster Rock, N.B., Jan.8, 2014.
Derailed train cars burn in Plaster Rock, N.B., Jan.8, 2014. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Tom Bateman

PLASTER ROCK, N.B. – Officials with CN say cleanup operations at the scene of a fiery freight train derailment near Plaster Rock, N.B., earlier this month are nearly complete.

CN spokesman Jim Feeny said in a statement Wednesday that the 19 cars that derailed two weeks ago have been removed and a locomotive will be taken from the scene by the end of the week.

READ MORE: Fireball seen from N.B. train derailment site as CN detonates controlled explosion

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Five of the derailed tankers were carrying crude oil and four others had liquefied petroleum gas when the 122-car train left the tracks in Wapske in northwestern New Brunswick.

Feeny said about 4,400 tonnes of contaminated soil has been removed and taken to a treatment facility, while the rest of the contaminated soil will be removed in the next few days.

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He said water wells in the area have been tested and cleared for use, with the exception of one that may have a problem not related to the derailment.

READ MORE: Crude oil spills are bigger from trains than pipelines

One home that was within 100 metres of the Jan. 7 derailment remains under an evacuation order and remediation work continues on that property.

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