CN has completed an investigation into a series of fires which occurred along a rail line within Winnipeg this past spring.

In May, fire crews were kept busy fighting several fires including some suspected to have been started by rail activity.

CN said in a statement an internal review did not identify any specific rail operations or equipment defects that would have caused a series of fires that occurred on May 6 during extremely dry conditions.

The company said it tried to identify any potential mechanical issues such as malfunctioning locomotives or operational activities such as track work that could have sparked fires in certain locations.

“With any situation like the this, the goal of the review is to remove from operation any equipment that could become a source of a fire and repair it, or stop any construction work or activities that could spark brush fires in extremely dry conditions,” the statement read.

50 grass or brush fires occurred in the city between January and early May – more than twice as many compared to the same period in 2017.

A CN spokesperson stressed the investigation was not meant to make a determination as to who was at fault.

The provincial Office of the Fire Commissioner will investigate fires if asked by the local authority but in this instance, the OFC said it did not receive a request and did not investigate the grass fires on May 6, 2018.

Matt Allard, city councillor for St. Boniface, a neighbourhood where one of the fires along a rail line occurred, said he's been told the city intends to send invoices to CN for damages related to the fires but Allard said more needs to be done.

"The question I have is about prevention how do we make sure this doesn't happen again and if there are fires apparently caused by trains,” said Allard. “What is the federal government doing to ensure that there are appropriate regulations in place and what are the rail lines doing to ensure that they're employing appropriate practices so that these types of things don't happen again."

CN said it's working with the city on ways to minimize the risk of brush fires along the railway, especially during dry conditions.