LAC-MEGANTIC -- Many well-known Quebec personalities spent Sunday in Lac-Megantic to honour first responders of the deadly tragedy that ripped through the small community in July.
The ceremony, hosted by Premier Pauline Marois at a local high school, was meant to thank the firefighters, paramedics and police men and women who came to the aid of the devastated community, where the bodies of 42 people were pulled from the ashes after a train derailed and careened through the centre of town, resulting in the explosion of mutiple train cars. Another five bodies are still missing.
Marois, speaking at the ceremony, praised the courage of the rescuers for their tireless efforts and for showing courage under extremely difficult circumstances.
“They saw people perish. They lost their parents, children, so today all Quebecers are saying ‘Thank you, thank you for your work, thank you for your involvement in this tragedy,'” said Marois.
“I’m very proud to receive that medal, but you know, we lost a lot of people,” said Eric Mercier of the Lac-Megantic fire department.
Firefighters from across the province, as well as Maine, united to help put out the flames and sift through the rubble. As many as 110 fire departments responded to the emergency call. Crews worked around the clock to ensure the fire did not spread to remaining oil tankers, ensuring they didn't explode under extreme heat.
“It’s nice. Of course we don’t do it for that; we do it because it’s part of our job. It’s part of our everyday duty. But it was really nice to recognize not just us, but everybody, all the fire departments around here and everybody that helped out,” said Patrick Lambert, fire chief of the nearby Nantes fire department.
The town’s Mayor Colette Roy-Laroche, who by all accounts showed strong leadership and courage in a difficult time, stood teary-eyed as she was also greeted to a warm standing ovation. Roy-Laroche along with the first responders and other local officials were given a total of 220 service medals.
With files from The Canadian Press
