Flames and Smoke are Seen at the Site of a Train Derailment in Wapske
A Canadian National Railway train carrying propane and crude oil derailed and caught fire on Tuesday in northwest New Brunswick, Canada, the latest in a string of train accidents that have put the surging crude-by-rail business under heavy scrutiny. No one was injured but about 45 nearby homes were evacuated. REUTERS/Mathieu Belanger
Flames and smoke are seen at the site of a train derailment in Wapske, New Brunswick, January 8, 2014.

A train which was carrying propane and crude oil got derailed in Canada, adding to the growing concerns about the transportation of oil in North America after several accidents took place in 2013.

Time reports that the derailment took place in a thinly populated area in New Brunswick, situated 20 miles away from the Maine-Canada border. Even though no one has been reported to be dead or injured, about 150 residents were forced to evacuate from their houses due to the large fire instigated by the derailment. The fire was seen burning even on Wednesday morning, according to the Associate Press.

Fox News catches CN Rail chief executive Claude Mongeau informing that total 17 cars got derailed and five of them had crude oil while four contained propane. He said that some cars carrying crude oil were burning, while some cars carrying propane were venting. Mr Mongeau, who apologised for the accident, added that it was early to assume what might have caused the derailment of the 122-car train. He hoped that the families would soon be allowed to go back to their houses.

According to Sharon DeWitt who is the emergency measures coordinator at Plaster Rock community, confirmed that no one got injured in the accident. She informed that people who fell in the 2-km radius of the fire had to be evacuated. The crude oil was supposed to arrive at one of the Irving Oil refineries in Saint John, New Brunswick.

The only people present in the train were the conductor and the engineer. Jim Feeny, the spokesman for Canadian National Railway, assured that neither of the two was injured in the accident. Both of them gave statements but Mr Feeny was not ready to provide further details of their statements.

Statistics Canada reports that about 68,000 car loads of fuel oils and crude petroleum moved in 2011 along the rail lines in Canada, while the number rose to about 113,000 in 2012. Between January 2013 and September 2013, about 118,000 carloads have already been moved via rail, according to the latest available data.