BANGOR — The Maine-based railroad whose oil train caused a fire and explosion that claimed 47 lives in a small town in Quebec has filed for bankruptcy protection.
Montreal, Maine and Atlantic filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Wednesday.
Company Chairman Ed Burkhardt said previously that a bankruptcy filing was likely because of service disruptions because its rail line remains closed in Lac-Megantic, Quebec. The Hermon-based company also faces lawsuits and enormous cleanup costs following the July 6 derailment and disaster in Lac-Megantic.
The train with 72 tankers full of crude oil was unattended when it began rolling, eventually tearing into the town. Burkhardt blamed the train’s operator for failing to set enough hand brakes.
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- The Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Wednesday. A MMA train derailed last month in the town of Lac-Megantic, Quebec, Canada, and killed 47 people in the explosion.
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