Crews work to clean up aviation fuel that was released into Kamloops Lake as seen on Nov. 4, 2025. (Image Credit: Government of British Columbia)

By Victor Kaisar

Cherry Creek Derailment

All railcars with fuel cleared away from Kamloops Lake as water sampling, cleanup continues

Nov 9, 2025 | 10:05 AM

CHERRY CREEK, B.C. — The BC Government says all rail cars carrying aviation fuel as well as those that previously contained gasoline have been removed from the site of a derailment near Cherry Creek.

In a Saturday (Nov. 8) evening update, the Ministry of Environment and Parks said that clean up efforts are still ongoing, as there are two rail cars that were carrying gypsum and the one empty lumber beam car still on site.

The Ministry also said final calculations have determined that 70,536 litres of aviation fuel was spilled, down from previous preliminary estimates of 80,700 litres. Those figures were reported Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC), which is legally required to clean up the spill.

“It is not uncommon for the final reported product loss to be different from the preliminary estimation,” the Ministry statement said. “The final amount is confirmed after the material is offloaded, measured, and weighed, which gives a more accurate result.”

Water testing is also ongoing but for now, reports are that all results remain below provincial Drinking Water Guidelines. Containment booms remain in the water near the incident scene.

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“I was down at the Tobiano marina area yesterday where a lot of the assets have been deployed and its a slew of activity,” TNRD Area ‘J’ Director Michael Grenier told CFJC Sunday. “As I look out the window, they’re diligently putting in the absorbent into the lake around the spill areas and they’re removing railcars. There’s a job to be done and people are getting on with the job.”

No impacts to water

The Thompson-Nicola Regional District (TNRD) said there are no impacts to the Walhachin Community Water System at this time. It previously also said there was “no direct impact” to the Savona Community Water System.

The TNRD noted any change in the status of water in Savona or Walhachin will be communicated directly to residents via Voyent Alert.

The intake to the Tobiano water system – which is operated by Bluestem Utilities – was also shutdown as a precaution. In a statement Friday (Nov. 7), Bluestem said it has shifted to a manual operating process where the intake is only open when an operator is on-site.

“We remain in regular contact with Interior Health and the Ministry of Environment and Parks to ensure our response aligns with regulatory guidance,” the statement said. “We have communicated with our customers and will continue to send updates as they become available.”

Residents in the small community of Frederick, located on the north shore of Kamloops Lake, were also told to stop drawing water from the lake as the smell of fuel was reported near that community. The TNRD noted CPKC was providing residents with bottled water.

“This recommendation was made proactively to protect private water users in the area, as small amounts of fuel drawn into a water intake may cause long-term damage to a water system,” Interior Health medical health officer Dr. Andy Delli Pizzi told CFJC on Friday.

“Interior Health will update Frederick area residents when it is safe to use water from the lake again. ”

According to the Ministry, a Shoreline Clean-up Assessment Technique (SCAT) professional retained by CPKC assessed the south shore of Kamloops Lake on Saturday, with assessments on the north shore scheduled for Sunday.

A total of 17 railcars went off the tracks around 7:00 p.m. last Saturday (Nov. 1). Four railcars were loaded with fuel, five contained gypsum and one was carrying pulp. While the others were empty, three cars had previously contained gasoline.

CPKC says there were no injuries reported, and the cause of the derailment is under investigation.

The latest updates from the B.C. Ministry of Environment can be found here.