Train conductor played significant role in Lac-Mégantic tragedy: Crown

Train conductor Thomas Harding played a significant role in the deaths of 47 people in the Lac-Mégantic tragedy because he didn’t sufficiently apply the brakes after parking the oil-laden convoy, the Crown argued Wednesday.

Harding applied only half the required level of brakes and didn’t test them to ensure they worked properly before leaving for the night, prosecutor Sacha Blais said in his closing arguments at the trial of Harding and his two co-accused.

READ MORE: Are the right people on trial for Lac-Mégantic train disaster?

On July 6, 2013, a runaway train carrying crude oil from the United States derailed in Lac-Mégantic and exploded, killing the 47 and destroying part of the downtown core.

Harding and former colleagues Richard Labrie and Jean Demaitre are each facing one count of criminal negligence causing the death of 47 people. They have all pleaded not guilty.

WATCH BELOW: Trial underway

0:16 Lac-Mégantic trial: Jury hears audio from calls between rail workers on night of crash

• Lac-Mégantic trial: Jury hears audio from calls between rail workers on night of crash
• Lac-Megantic criminal negligence trial continues in Sherbrooke
• Lac-Megantic criminal negligence trial begins in Sherbrooke
• Lac-Mégantic defence lawyer ‘optimistic’ on Day 1 of trial
• Lac-Mégantic train disaster survivor blames company
• Extended: Rebuilding Lac-Mégantic from the ground up
• The anatomy of the Lac-Mégantic train disaster
• Lac-Megantic residents demand safer railways

Previous Video

Next Video

Blais said the derailment and explosion would not have happened if not for Harding’s actions.

Get breaking National news

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.

Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up

By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

Rules that needed to be followed were outlined clearly in documents, Blais said.

READ MORE: Lac-Megantic’s Musi-Cafe rises from the ashes

A train parked on a downward slope requires a certain number of brakes that need to be tested to ensure they are in proper working order, he continued.

Harding had stopped the train on top of a slope in nearby Nantes before the locomotive began moving on its own, barrelling into Lac-Mégantic.

READ MORE: 1st witnesses testify in trial of 3 men in Lac-Mégantic train disaster

“The documents are clear” and not complicated, Blais said.

“If Harding doesn’t do his job properly and safely in Nantes, who will?”

Share this on X Click to share quote on X: "If Harding doesn't do his job properly and safely in Nantes, who will?"

Closing arguments are scheduled to last until Friday at the Quebec Superior Court trial in Sherbrooke.