Flooding washes out CN rail line in northern Alberta

CN Rail is monitoring a washout on the rail line south of Indian Cabins, Alta., a company spokesperson says.

Images posted on Monday to the Facebook groupNorthern Alberta - Fire and Flood & Storm Reportshow a train track with the ground below washed out, reportedlyin an area south of Indian Cabins. The communityis 15 kilometres from the N.W.T.-Alberta border.

The rail line is an essential supply route for transporting goods to the North, including materials that are shipped by barge in the summerto N.W.T. communities along the Mackenzie River and into the Western Arctic.

The washout is being "safely inspected and monitored by ground crews,"wrote CN Rail spokesperson Tyler Banickin an email to CBC News.

The area will be monitored by the company in the coming days to determine when the rail linecould reopen.

"CNwould like to thank our partners for their assistance in providing equipment, supplies and people to address the high-water events impactingCNinfrastructure. Our thoughts are with those affected in the communities by the recent overland flooding," wrote Banick.