July 6, 2013, marks Canada鈥檚 one of the worst rail disasters with a runaway 72 tank cars train full of oil derailed and exploded at the heart of Lac-M茅gantic, Quebec. Today marks Lac-M茅gantic rail disaster鈥檚 10-year anniversary.

The NDP wants to honour this day in the memory of 47 people who lost their lives in this disaster and pledged to prevent such unforeseeable catastrophe from happening by pushing federal changes.

鈥淥n the 10-year anniversary of the tragedy in Lac-M茅gantic, our thoughts are with the families of those who lost their lives, and with all community members who were so profoundly affected.鈥� said Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Taylor Bachrach, who is also the NDP Transport Critic.

He highlighted that the Lac-M茅gantic disaster could have been avoided with proper safety measures in the Canadian rail system and yet a decade later federal law and regulations are not reformed properly.

鈥淚t is in their memory that we continue to push for stronger rail safety laws that hold rail corporations accountable. The reality is that another Lac-M茅gantic-scale disaster is still possible because the culture of corporate capture and self-regulation that allowed it to occur still exists,鈥� he said.

Over the years, trains have been carrying large volumes of goods which are considered dangerous have increased. Records of the Transport Safety Board of Canada says, among 9,283 rail incidents between 2013 and 2022, roughly 1,060 incidents were involved with dangerous goods.

These incidents killed 559 people and seriously injured 529 others.

Last year, Bachrach made 33 recommendations for strengthening Canada鈥檚 rail safety regime during the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transportation, Infrastructure and Communities hold hearings.

鈥淣evertheless, the volume of dangerous goods shipped by rail has increased dramatically, which means the stakes have never been higher,鈥� he stated. 鈥淭he Auditor General, the Environment Commissioner, the Transportation Safety Board, and the Transport Committee all been ringing the alarm bells, but the minister seems to be asleep at the switch.鈥�

鈥淚f we don鈥檛 see substantive reform soon, I am deeply concerned that another major, and preventable disaster will take place,鈥� he also said.