CRIMINAL CHARGES FOR LAC-MEGANTIC

Far too often corporate irresponsibilty resulting in human death goes unpunished and even unacknowledged. Every now and then however a case both so egregious and so publicly horrifying occurs. Then those very same politicians who responded to corporate lobbying by weakening safety legislation or leaving massive loopholes in it; suddenly discover virtue and justice. At Lac-Megantic 47 people died totally unecessarily. This was no "accident" whereby a sleepy or inattentive car/truck driver for example drove into the side of a train derailing it and spilling it's contents. This was a stopped train without external forces involved, simply by gravity rolling downhill into a town where it jumped the track and exploded. The issues involved also should include the inherent safety of the railcars themselves. Highly explosive and flammable contents should only be shipped in the absolute safest railcars available. This issue may well receive short shrift in the desire to lay blame and punishment on those closest to the tragedy.

Three individuals only have been charged with criminal negligence causing death. The train engineer, the traffic controller and the manager of train operations are facing these charges. Corporate decisions and procedures far higher up the ladder may well have been more appropriate. The story in the Waterloo Region Record is titled "Lac-Megantic: three accused freed after arraignment".