No concerns for significant impact to provincial wetlands following train derailment, says city

'There were no reported leaks of dangerous goods,' said Liam MacDonald, with the Transportation Safety Board of Canada

There are no concerns for significant impact to the Priddis Slough as crews continued to work at the scene of a train derailment, the city said. A small number of rail cars derailed into a pond and surrounding provincial wetland known as the Priddis Slough at 7:50 a.m. Monday in the 17000 block of Sheriff King Street S.W. A CPKC freight train was travelling south on the main track when 13 rail cars derailed at mile 108 on the Aldersyde Subdivision in Calgary, Transportation Safety Board of Canada media relations coordinator Liam MacDonald said in a Tuesday update.

Eight cars containing dangerous goods were involved in the derailment. Seven contained liquefied petroleum and one contained Argon, refrigerated liquid. “There were no reported leaks of dangerous goods,” MacDonald said.

“A body of water adjacent to the right-of-way was impacted by the derailment. Two TSB investigators from the Calgary office have deployed. The TSB is gathering information and assessing the occurrence.”

The board will assess the situation to determine the classification of the investigation, MacDonald said. Investigators are currently in the field phase of the investigation process. Between 2015 and 2025, there have been 158 main track derailments.

“We are assessing the accident/incident to determine the facts and issues involved,” MacDonald said. “Once all available information has been collected, a decision will be made on whether to conduct a full investigation, based on the potential for advancing transportation safety.” Materials ‘have not had contact with the environment,’ says city spokesperson

The wetland receives stormwater and is managed to ensure its viability, said City of Calgary spokesperson Jaime Stopa. Management of Monday’s incident is being led by CPKC and Alberta Environment and Protected Areas, with the city conducting water quality testing and communicating results to the province. “At present, there are no concerns for significant impact to this provincial wetland, as the materials within the rail cars are inert or remain within shipping vessels or containers and have not had contact with the environment,” Stopa said.

Priddis Slough is part of Calgary’s stormwater system which helps slow stormwater, settle out sediments and remove other pollutants through natural processes before it returns to the Bow River. The city monitors and reports annually on water quality, water level, and vegetation health of the wetland, Stopa said. Rail traffic reopens, but road closures remain in effect CPKC crews have remained on the scene of the derailment since Monday, spokesman Terry Cunha said in an update.

Track repairs and safety inspections were completed Tuesday and the corridor was reopened to rail traffic in the late morning. “Overnight, involved rail cars were repositioned for safe offloading in the days ahead,” Cunha said. “Work to unload and ultimately remove the involved railroad cars will continue this week.”

A boom was placed in the slough to contain wood in the water. There were no leaks from any of the involved tanker cars and there is no risk to public safety from the derailment, Cunha said. Roads along Sheriff King Street S.W. remain closed in both directions between Silverton Way S.W., Silverado Way S.W. and Silverado Boulevard S.W. while work continues on the train derailment.

The closure is expected to remain in place for the next 36 hours. Catch up with the day’s headlines, curated by our editors and delivered to your email inbox at lunchtime on every business day. Sign up now for the Calgary Herald Noon News Roundup.