2014 Saint-Henri train sideswipe incident

2014 train collision in Montreal, Quebec 2014 Saint-Henri train sideswipe incident File:CN_7208_(3982404651).jpg 300px CN GP9RM #7208, one of the locomotives involved in the sideswipe incident, on October 3, 2009. 45 28 22.2 N 73 35 32.6 W mds inline,title type:event_region:MTL-QC 2014 02 23 12:05 am Saint-Henri, Montreal, Quebec, Canada Canada CN's Montreal subdivision Canadian National Railway (CN) Sideswipe train collision Human error from a distraction and a missed signal Two, CN 7208 and CN Q12111-21/CN 121 Four, two on both trains 0 0 The 2014 Saint-Henri train sideswipe incident was a train collision that occurred at Saint-Henri in Montreal, Quebec, Canada at 12:05 am on February 23, 2014, on the Canadian National (CN)'s Montreal subdivision.Government of Canada Transportation Safety Board of Canada 2014-02-23 Rail transportation safety investigation R14D0011 - Transportation Safety Board of Canada https://www.bst.gc.ca/eng/enquetes-investigations/rail/2014/r14d0011/r14d0011.html 2025-11-14 www.bst.gc.ca Background Yard assignment train and train Q12111-21 At 9:00 pm on February 22, 2014, a Canadian National (CN) yard assignment train was switching with a two-man train crew from CN's Taschereau Yard to the Port of Montreal in Montreal, Quebec.Government of Canada Transportation Safety Board of Canada 2014-02-23 Railway Investigation Report R14D0011 - Transportation Safety Board of Canada https://www.tsb.gc.ca/eng/rapports-reports/rail/2014/r14d0011/r14d0011.html 2025-11-14 www.tsb.gc.caCanada Transportation Safety Board of Competing priorities led to 2014 collision between two Canadian National trains in Montreal, Quebec https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/competing-priorities-led-to-2014-collision-between-two-canadian-national-trains-in-montreal-quebec-520930091.html 2025-11-14 www.newswire.ca en The train was composed of: CN GP9RM #7208 CN GP9RM #7224 25 fully-loaded grain cars Soo Line grain car #122215 Soo Line grain car #121820 The yard assignment train departed Taschereau Yard at 11:15 pm. CN train Q12111-21, also known as CN intermodal train 121, was travelling to Toronto from Halifax, Nova Scotia.QMI Agence 2014-02-23 Fuite de près de 4000 litres de diesel après une collision entre deux trains à Montréal https://www.journaldemontreal.com/2014/02/23/un-train-deraille-a-montreal 2025-11-14 Le Journal de MontréalMontreal C. T. V. 2014-02-24 Train derailment rattles St-Henri residents https://www.ctvnews.ca/montreal/article/train-derailment-rattles-st-henri-residents/ 2025-11-15 CTVNews en The train was pulling a total of 120 intermodal cars.2014-02-23 Light fuel spill as trains derail in Montreal https://torontosun.com/2014/02/23/light-fuel-spill-as-trains-derail-in-montreal live 2025-12-10 Toronto Sun Sideswipe incident The crew of CN yard assignment train had finished performing a running brake test at 11 mph km/h on to check if the braking system was working, after the tests were done, with the train stopping in 32 seconds, they proceeded on the journey to the Port of Montreal. At 12:03 am on February 23, 2014, the yard assignment was travelling at 11 mph km/h on when it rolls past a red signal at Milepost 3.60, near switch 501. CN intermodal train 121 sideswipes the yard assignment train at 12:05 am, bending CN #7208's right side of the frame and damaging the track itself on the line, the two Soo Line hopper cars of the 25 hopper cars had derailed along with CN #7224, while the 120-car train of CN intermodal train 121 didn't derail, but intermodal cars 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17 were damaged after scraping the frame of GP9RM #7208. However, not a single person was killed or injured in the wreck.2014-02-23 St-Henri train derailment spills 3,500 litres of diesel fuel https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/st-henri-train-derailment-spills-3-500-litres-of-diesel-fuel-1.2548381 2025-11-15 CBCDéraillement dans Saint-Henri https://ici.radio-canada.ca/info/videos/1-7004281/deraillement-dans-saint-henri 2025-12-06 Radio-Canada fr-caLéouzon Roxane 2014-02-24 Un manque de transparence du CN dénoncé https://journalmetro.com/actualites/montreal/453192/le-cn-doit-revoir-sa-facon-de-communiquer-avec-les-elus-croit-dorais/ 2025-12-06 Journal Métro fr-FR One of the two GP9RM's fuel tanks began to leak 3,500 L mL off of diesel fuel as a result of the sideswipe, but didn't start a fire. 2014-02-23 Train derailment in St-Henri, cleanup underway https://www.ctvnews.ca/montreal/article/train-derailment-in-st-henri-cleanup-underway/ 2025-11-14 CTVNews en 2015-08-07 Accident en 2014: erreur humaine à l'origine de la collision entre deux trains https://journalmetro.com/actualites/montreal/821200/accident-en-2014-erreur-humaine-a-lorigine-de-la-collision-entre-deux-trains/ 2025-12-06 Journal Métro fr-FR Investigation The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) launched an investigation and they found multiple causes, they found out that the crew of the CN yard assignment train, passed a red signal, resulting in the collision with CN intermodal train 121. The conductor, at the time, was distracted while copying instructions from the rail traffic controller (RTC). The assistant conductor had left the lead locomotive, leaving the conductor alone in the cab. "The first train tried to brake, but it didn't stop in time and collided with the second train at a point where their tracks converged" Guy Laporte Léouzon Roxane 2014-02-23 Déraillement de train dans Saint-Henri https://journalmetro.com/actualites/montreal/452607/deraillement-de-train-dans-saint-henri/ 2025-11-14 Journal Métro fr-FRBorough Mayor Benoît Dorais was upset that Canadian National (CN) had informed elected officials very late and with little detail to back it up, which led to him criticizing CN for poor communication, he stated in an interview: "I only received an email from CN around 10:00 a.m., 10 hours after the accident""It contained very little information, less than what we were reading in the media, which, moreover, contradicted each other." Benoit Dorais Aftermath The TSB released its final report on August 6, 2015, identifying the cause of the accident, as the CN yard assignment crew, operating with a remote-control locomotive (Beltpack), failed to recognize and comply with a stop signal, leading to a collision. While cleanup of the wreckage was going, the two Soo Line hopper cars and CN GP9RM #7224 were re-railed, a crane was used to re-rail CN #7208, and due to the sideswipe damaging the frame of #7208, the frame of #7208 collapsed, causing CN to consider the locomotive damaged beyond repair and resulting in the #7208 being scrapped on site.March 2014 TEMPOjr https://epe.lac-bac.gc.ca/100/201/300/tempo_jr/2014/v45n03.pdf?nodisclaimer=1 Forest City Railway Society London, Ontario 45 3 2 GP9RM #7224 was repaired by CN and continued service until being sold to Lambton Diesel Specialists, Inc. (LDSX) and is still in service as LDSX #7224 as of 2026 on the Trillium Railway (TRRY). After the accident, the Green Party of Canada urges the federal government to strengthen rules for trains operating in urban centers including the CN's Montreal subdivision. "This is not the place to permit automatic trains" Daniel Green The Gazette The Green Party of Canada argued that urban residents were at greater risk because the trains would often pass close to their homes, schools, and businesses. As a result, they called for stricter regulations, better oversight, and stronger safety standards for trains in cities.2015-10-02 Green Party calls for tougher rules for trains through urban areas http://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/green-party-calls-for-tougher-rules-for-trains-through-urban-areas https://web.archive.org/web/20160927151308/http://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/green-party-calls-for-tougher-rules-for-trains-through-urban-areas 2016-09-27 2025-11-15 Montreal Gazette en-US See also 1994 Grande Cache runaway train 1995 Kootenay Lake train derailment Lac-Mégantic rail disaster List of rail accidents (2010–19) List of rail accidents in Canada References Further reading 2014-02-24 St-Henri residents concerned after train derailment https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/st-henri-residents-concerned-after-train-derailment-1.2550155 2025-11-15 CBC Opinion: When it comes to railway safety, CN has missed the train Watch News Videos Online https://globalnews.ca/news/1169421/opinion-when-it-comes-to-railway-safety-cn-has-missed-the-train/ 2025-12-06 Global News en-US Category:Train collisions in Canada Saint-Henri train sideswipe incident Saint-Henri train sideswipe incident Saint-Henri train sideswipe incident Saint-Henri train sideswipe incident Category:Accidents and incidents involving Canadian National Railway Category:Transport in Montreal Category:Rail transport in Quebec Category:Disasters in Montreal