Ten years after the train tragedy that marked Quebec, the municipality of Lac-Mégantic is organizing various activities, from July 4 to 8, to commemorate the train derailment that killed 47 people in 2013.
“As a city, we also have a duty to remember, and I believe that we have a duty to highlight this event,” said Julie Morin, mayor of Lac-Mégantic, on the phone.
The Sainte-Agnès church will open its doors for 24 hours from July 5 to 6. A baroque chamber music concert will be presented on the evening of July 5 by the ensemble Le Petit Rien, made up of three musicians.
Around 1:15 a.m. in the early morning, when the train carrying crude oil derailed and then exploded in downtown Lac-Mégantic on July 6, 2013, a silent march will take place in the streets of the municipality, in memory of those who lost their lives in the tragedy. Much of the city center was then destroyed, and nearly 2,000 people were evacuated. At 11 a.m. the same day, a memorial mass will be celebrated.
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRECHETTE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Julie Morin, Mayor of Lac-Mégantic
As much as there are people who want us to organize commemorations, there are others who want us to move on. What we want to do this summer, and it’s really according to the will of the citizens, is to remember, to support each other too, because it brings back all kinds of emotions to many people, and also to tell each other.
Julie Morin, Mayor of Lac-Mégantic
The municipality has also opted for a sober cultural program, at the request of the residents of the city. On July 6, a concert will be offered free of charge at Veterans Park. The next day, a show will be presented on the Musi-Café stage.
The Musi-Café, where many people died on the night of July 5 to 6, 2013, reopened a year and a half after the tragedy, 400 meters from its original location.
A “comfort show” will also take place on July 8 at Veterans Park. “Light effects and stories from citizens will add to the whole show in order to create a warm atmosphere, a place of communion and pride”, can we read in a press release issued by the municipality.
In addition to remembering the tragedy, these various events aim to highlight the reconstruction of Lac-Mégantic. “I think it’s a good time, in the tenth, to take the time to see the progress we have made collectively, both in terms of the reconstruction of buildings and social reconstruction,” says Julie Morin.
“Sometimes we would like to experience things in a more intimate way, but it is also an event that marked Quebec, and I think it is important that we give news,” adds the mayor, underlining the wave of solidarity. received by the municipality at the time of the tragedy.
Various elements will highlight the tenth anniversary of the tragedy throughout the summer, including an exhibition on the subject that will be presented at the heritage train station in Lac-Mégantic.
“There are still challenges, but there is a lot, a lot, a lot of progress,” concludes the mayor.
Among the challenges, several citizens oppose the Lac-Mégantic rail bypass project, for which the expropriation process was initiated in February. Some fear environmental impacts or for rail safety, while freight trains always “longer and faster”, according to them, cross the municipality.
On April 15, a Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) train derailed on the same railway line as the one that crosses Lac-Mégantic on the other side of the border, in Maine, injuring three employees. .
This dispatch was produced with financial assistance from the Meta Exchange and The Canadian Press for News.