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A British Columbia Supreme Court judge says a class-action lawsuit against Canadian Pacific and Canadian National railways can move forward after a catastrophic fire in June 2021 burned most of the community of Lytton, B.C.
The ruling released Tuesday by Judge Ward Branch says there is “some factual basis” to support the plaintiffs’ allegations that the “horrible fire” was caused by railroad operations, where CN and CP have parallel tracks running through the city.
It says several lawsuits were filed after the fire, including by individuals and First Nations, and that a “competing” class action lawsuit was denied certification in 2023.
The representative plaintiff in the certified action is Carel Moiseiwitsch, whose home in Lytton was destroyed by the fire, along with assets from her design and information technology business in her and her husband’s home.
The judge’s decision says the woman alleges she was displaced by the fire and claims to have “lasting trauma” from having to escape and lose her home, her cat and “her way of life.”
Another representative plaintiff, Jordan Spinks, is a member of the Kanaka Bar Indian Band who was displaced by the fire for “several months” and says he lost his job and the fire affected his mental health.
The class is for those who suffered losses in the fire and subclasses for family members of people who died as a result of the fire and those who lost property that was not covered by insurance.
Two people died in the fire and most of the town was razed during a heat dome where the temperature reached a Canadian record of 49.6 C in Lytton the day before the fire.
Authorities believe the bushfire that swept through Lytton was caused by human activity, but the source is still under investigation.
Anthony Vecchio, the attorney representing the plaintiffs in the case, said a trial on the matter is scheduled to begin in May 2027.
He said the certification of the class action means his clients will now have access to documents held by CN and CP about that fateful day in 2021, as part of the discovery process.
“We’re going to take care of that right away, as quickly as we can,” the attorney said.
Tricia Thorpe, director of the Thompson-Nicola Regional District whose home was razed in the 2021 fire, said the class-action certification was good news, but she understood the railroads would appeal the ruling.
He said he spoke to another Lytton resident, who said he felt like someone was finally listening to residents’ concerns.
“That feeling of abandonment has been central for a lot of people: that no one has really cared about the people who were affected by this fire,” he told CBC News.
“It’s about village recovery. It’s about different government entities and things like that, but [not about] the real people who once lived here and are no longer here.”
