Global Courant
The village of Lytton and the local regional district have filed a lawsuit against CN Rail, CP Rail and Transport Canada, accusing them of negligence in the run-up to the 2021 fire that devastated the village.
In a civil suit filed June 16 in the B.C. Supreme Court, the village and Thompson-Nicola Regional District say the railroad companies and the federal regulator breached their duty of care to the village of Fraser Canyon just before the fire on June 30, 2021 .
Hundreds of people living in and around the village were forced to leave that day in the community 160 miles northeast of Vancouver, leaving two people dead. More than 90 percent of the village was charred.
While the devastating fire was suspected to be human-induced, the Transport Safety Board (TSB) has found no evidence linking nearby train activity to the blaze.
The CN Railroad passes through the village of Lytton, BC, in the Fraser Canyon. (Maggie MacPherson/CBC)
But with reconstruction progressing slowly even two years later, the village and regional district are seeking costs and damages from the railway companies and Transport Canada. The cost of rebuilding the village has risen to over $100 million.
“As of June 30, 2021, despite the extreme weather conditions, current wildfire risk and ongoing wildfires in the area, both CP Rail and CN Rail have continued rail operations in the village area,” the lawsuit reads.
The lawsuit states that a train passed through the village 18 minutes before the fire started at 4:48 p.m. on June 30.
According to the lawsuit, CP owned or operated the train, which was operated by CN crews. The TSB had previously found that the fire had started “within five feet” of the rail line, which runs through the community.
The lawsuit alleges, among other things, that the train companies failed to monitor weather conditions — with a historic heat wave creating an “extreme” fire risk — and failed to ensure appropriate fire prevention measures were in place.
It also alleges that Transport Canada let the village down by not ordering CP and CN to stop the trains that day, and that they should have known it was unsafe to ride.
None of the allegations have been proven in court.
CBC News has contacted the defendants for comment. They have up to 21 days to file a counter-defence.
A spokesman for CP Rail said they would not comment if reached by CBC News.
Cause still unclear
The cause of the 2021 Lytton fire has not been definitively determined two years later.
Local residents claimed sparks flying from the nearby railroad track likely set fire to bone-dry terrain prone to fire from the extreme heat wave that week.
Freight trains are a common location in Lytton, BC, with the railroad running directly through the town of Fraser Canyon. A coal train was traveling west through the city 18 minutes before the fire on June 30, 2021. (Matt Meuse/CBC)
A proposed class action lawsuit against CP and CN from villagers is still pending before the BC Supreme Court at the time of publication.
While the Village and Regional District have not specified exact dollar amounts as they seek damages from the three defendants, the Insurance Bureau of Canada says damages likely total $102 million.
