Rotarians send water bottles to Lac-megantic disaster site
Rotarian Colin Mackenzie was shocked when he heard about the disaster in LacMegantic, the Quebec town devastated after a runaway freight train levelled the downtown June 6 and killed at least 50. Then he j umped i nto action. “When we found out what happened, Peterborough’s Rotary club saw need and we wanted to help out,” said Mackenzie, who called Norman Angell, former president of the Rotary Club of Quebec and incoming district governor, to see what Peterborough Rotarians could do to help.
“He said there was an urgent need for water,” explained Mackenzie. “Not just for LacMegantic residents, but also for the emergency crews working in the hot weather.”
At his next Rotary meeting, Mackenzie asked his fellow Rotarians to donate to a water fund and help pick up bottles of water from various suppliers.
“They were right on board,” he said. “It seems like everyone was touched by what they saw on the news and we were fortu- nate enough to be able to come together and do something.”
Emergency crew are still searching for bodies in the charred remains of cafes and stores that made up the lakeside city’s downtown.
In just five days, Mackenzie and the Rotarians collected 13,000 bottles of water. They also received a large donation of water from Dave Morello, owner of Morello’s Independent Grocers.
Dan McWilliams, a long-time Rotarian, member of city council and owner of McWilliams Moving and Storage agreed to transport the water on the 730kilometer relief trip for free.
The water reached LacMegantic Sunday.
“The moving crew could not believe the devastation there,” Mackenzie said. “They were just flooded with what they saw. It was horrific.”
The water will be passed out to residents and emergency personnel by the Canadian Red Cross.
“It was great to see the team come together,” Mackenzie said. “That’s what I classifying us Rotarians as — a team. We’re always happy to help someone out.”