WINNIPEG - Canadian National Railway says it's sending a cheque to the City of Winnipeg to cover firefighting costs after a series of brush fires suspected of being caused by a CN train.
The city confirms it sent an invoice to the rail company on Aug.7, and CN confirms it's paying up.
The fires broke out as a freight train made its way through Winnipeg from east to west on May 6, at a time when southern portions of Manitoba were experiencing tinder-dry conditions.
Homes and businesses were threatened and trees, fencing, building material and Manitoba Hydro poles were burned.
CN later said an internal investigation turned up no evidence that the train caused the fires, despite internal fire department communications, documents and video footage that all suggested the freight sparked the flames.
CN is paying for the cost of fire crew deployments, which the city has calculated to be roughly $62,000.
