In this exhaustively researched work of investigative journalism, Anne-Marie Saint-Cerny examines the causes and after-effects of the 2013 Lac-Mégantic rail disaster. When a driverless, out-of-control train carrying highly volatile crude oil decimated the downtown area of the picturesque town of Lac-Mégantic, it immediately killed forty-seven people and lead to the suicides of several others. Saint-Cerny reveals how the tragedy was not an accident, but rather was knowingly caused by powerful people and institutions far removed from the town itself. Her moving and passionate book asks probing and vital questions: Who are the tragedy's real culprits? Who took control of the crime scene? Who rebuilt the town, and in whose interest? The fruit of five years of work and interviews with nearly a hundred people from various backgrounds, including victims and their relatives, Mégantic tells the story of the disaster in three acts - before, during, and after - in a scathing critique whose ultimate goal is to prevent the preventable. Book jacket.