Canadian National Railway (CNR) is to pay Alberta’s government C$18.6m in an out-of-court settlement over a wildfire which destroyed 1,200km2.
The government claimed a faulty freight train wheel started the 2001 blaze beside tracks near Chisholm, leading to one of the worst forest fires in Alberta’s history.
CNR has not admitted responsibility for the disaster but its settlement includes paying out C$10m in cash and a further C$8.6m during the next decade, part of which will be spent on fire prevention projects.
