by Maximillian Alvarez | Jul 6, 2026 | east palestine, Economy, Economy and Inequality, Podcast, Politics and Movements: International, Politics and Movements: US, railroad, sacrifice zones, Working People
10 years before the catastrophic train derailment and chemical disaster in East Palestine, Ohio, one of the deadliest rail disasters in North American history took place in the Canadian town of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec.
On July 6, 2013, an unattended freight train that had been parked on the tracks overnight began to roll downhill and gather alarming speed as it careened towards the city center of Lac-Mégantic. The train, which was operated by Montreal, Maine, and Atlantic Railway and carrying over 2 million gallons of crude oil, derailed around 1:15 AM. The resulting explosions and fire killed 47 people and destroyed over 40 buildings, obliterating a large portion of the downtown area and prompting mass evacuations.
In this special episode of Working People, we speak with a panel of survivors of the Lac-Mégantic rail disaster in Canada and the East Palestine rail disaster in the USA.
Panelists include: Robert Bellefleur, a resident of Lac-Mégantic and spokesperson for the Lac-Mégantic Citizens’ Coalition for Railroad Safety; Gilbert Carette, a resident of Lac-Mégantic and a member of the Lac-Mégantic Citizens’ Coalition for Railroad Safety; Gilles Fluet, a resident of Lac-Mégantic who narrowly escaped the 2013 train crash and witnessed the derailment firsthand; Anne-Marie Saint-Cerny, award-winning writer, videographer, social and environmental justice activist, and author of Mégantic: A Deadly Mix of Oil, Rail, and Avarice; Jami Wallace, a displaced resident of East Palestine, Ohio, and founder of the Chemically Impacted Communities Coalition; Christina Siceloff, a Creek Ranger and resident of Beaver County, Pennsylvania, affected by the 2023 Norfolk Southern train derailment and chemical disaster.
If you or members of your community are interested in attending or participating in TRNN’s
by Maximillian Alvarez | Dec 29, 2025 | east palestine, Economy and Inequality, Politics and Movements: US, railroad, sacrifice zones, video
On February 3, 2023, a Norfolk Southern ‘bomb train’ carrying hazardous chemicals derailed in the small town of East Palestine, Ohio. Three days later, Norfolk Southern pressured local authorities to dump and burn five tanker cars full of vinyl chloride, blasting a toxic mushroom cloud into the air and exposing residents to toxins that have poisoned their bodies and homes. In the weeks, months, and years following the East Palestine derailment and chemical disaster, the Environmental Protection Agency assured residents that the air, soil, and water in their community was safe. But when independent testing expert and Blue Shirt Justice League founder Scott Smith began testing for toxins in and around East Palestine, his findings revealed a horrifying truth that, according to Smith, Norfolk Southern and the EPA have tried to cover up.
Additional links/info:
Scott Smith Facebook page
Blue Shirt Justice League website and Facebook page
Government Accountability Project, “Initial FOIA Findings Suggest EPA Efforts to Surveil and Discredit Environmental Whistleblower”
Kelly Kennedy, WHSV 3, “Independent testing finds dangerous chemicals at East Palestine family’s farm”
Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “Residents in this small town ‘left for dead’ after industrial disaster”
Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “An industrial disaster wrecked my home. Now I’m living out of a hotel”
Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “A billion-dollar company poisoned my home and destroyed my town”
Maximillian Alvarez, Steve Mellon, & Mike Balonek, The Real News Network, “Trainwreck in ‘Trump Country’: Partisan politics hasn’t helped East Palestine, OH (DOCUMENTARY)”
CreditsProduction: Maximillian AlvarezPost-Production: Maximillian Alvarez, David Hebden
Transcript
The following is a rushed transcript and may contain errors. A proofread version will be made available as soon as possible.
Ashley McCollum:
Oh God. What caused it?
East Palestine Resident:
Train derailed.
Ashley
by Maximillian Alvarez | Dec 19, 2025 | documentary, east palestine, Economy and Inequality, Politics and Movements: US, railroad, sacrifice zones, video
On February 3, 2023, a Norfolk Southern ‘bomb train’ carrying hazardous chemicals derailed in the small town of East Palestine, Ohio. Three days later, Norfolk Southern pressured local authorities to dump and burn five tanker cars full of chemicals, blasting a mushroom cloud of toxic phosgene and hydrogen chloride into the air. Nearly three years later, residents like Jami Wallace and her family are still suffering the toxic fallout.
Additional links/info:
Jami Wallace Facebook page
Jami’s fundraiser for Chemically Impacted Communities Coalition (CICC)
Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “An industrial disaster wrecked my home. Now I’m living out of a hotel”
Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “A billion-dollar company poisoned my home and destroyed my town”
Maximillian Alvarez, Steve Mellon, & Mike Balonek, The Real News Network, “Trainwreck in ‘Trump Country’: Partisan politics hasn’t helped East Palestine, OH (DOCUMENTARY)”
Credits:
Production: Maximillian Alvarez
Post-Production: Maximillian Alvarez, David Hebden
Additional photos courtesy of Jami Wallace
Transcript
The following is a rushed transcript and may contain errors. A proofread version will be made available as soon as possible.Jami Wallace:
It’s not fair. We’re people, our lives matter. My daughter’s life matters, and that’s what everybody is telling me is that you guys are just accosted doing business. We can kill a whole community and who cares? It didn’t hit the bottom line, so we’ll do it again.
[TEXT ON-SCREEN]:
On Feb. 3, 2023, a Norfolk Southern ‘bomb train’ carrying hazardous chemicals derailed in the small town of East Palestine, Ohio. Three days later, Norfolk Southern pressured local authorities to dump and burn five tanker cars full of chemicals, blasting a mushroom cloud of toxic phosgene and hydrogen chloride into the air. Nearly 3 years
