ANC back on track after Trestle Bridge fire

By Rechell McDonald

The Trestle Bridge fire was a big loss for the community of Mayerthorpe, but it was also an integral part of the transportation system for the area. ANC Transloading Inc., specifically, used that portion of rail system regularly and its loss posed some logistical problems for the company, but as Cornel Notenboom, President of ANC Transloading reports, they are in better shape than they thought they would be after the fire.

“The last we heard from CN was that the line would be repaired by May 16, so they have done an incredible job of getting the line back in service, very quickly. The project we had initially thought was going to be delayed because of this fire, now seems to be back on track because of this quick restoration. We are in debt to CN for their rapid response to the situation; they’ve been amazing.”

With wild fire season getting off to an early and fierce start this year, and with so many fires in and around Mayerthorpe leading up to the Trestle Bridge fire, there was some debate as to what the cause of the fire was, but Notenboom says for him it was always suspicious.

“I kind of suspected it was arson from the beginning. There was no lightning reported in the area at the time of the fire, and although there is a remote possibility that the locomotive could have caused sparks as it went over the tracks, since the fire started down close to the ground that didn’t make much sense. I was not at all surprised when they confirmed that it was arson.”

The arsonist responsible for the Trestle Bridge fire, and other recent fires in the area has been apprehended, but with the wild fire evacuation alerts and warnings spreading in the wake of the Fort McMurray fire, Lac St. Anne County has found itself on notice, too.

“We are all very concerned with the heightened awareness of wild fires throughout the province. Whitecourt is also a town that lives in the forest, a lightning strike or a cigar butt could put us in the same position as Fort McMurray so we are concerned. We haven’t had, at this time, any further updates on that for our area, but we do have an evacuation plan in place and we run periodic drills. The local fire chief was just here and did an inspection of our site.”