Two cars of a Via Rail passenger train have derailed in eastern New Brunswick.
Via Rail says train 14 was headed to Halifax from Montreal when two cars left the tracks near Coal Branch -- located roughly 46 kilometres northwest of Moncton -- around 12:35 p.m. Thursday.
The company says both cars are upright and all 94 passengers and 15 crew members are safe. No injuries were reported.
Via Rail says it has found alternative transportation to take passengers to their final destination.
Train 14 is now cancelled. Any passengers who have made reservations along the route will be offered alternative transportation to get to their destination. They can also accept a full refund, or exchange their ticket for a later departure.
“Via Rail acknowledges that this situation has an impact on the travel plans of our customers and we apologize for the inconvenience,” said spokesperson Mariam Diaby in a statement.
“As the safety and well-being of our passengers remain our number one priority, we are focusing our efforts into bringing customers currently on-board to their final destinations as quickly and as safely as possible.”
Via Rail says it will conduct a full investigation to determine the cause of the derailment.
A similar incident happened near Debert, N.S., last month. Via Rail said a passenger train struck some debris, resulting in a fuel leak, on March 20. There were no injuries.
