1979 Mississauga train derailment
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| Date | November 10, 1979 |
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| Time | 11:53 p.m. |
| Location | Mississauga, Ontario |
| Coordinates | 43°34′15″N 79°36′23″W / 43.57083°N 79.60639°WCoordinates: 43°34′15″N 79°36′23″W / 43.57083°N 79.60639°W |
| Country | Canada |
| Operator | Canadian Pacific |
| Type of incident | Derailment |
| Cause | Overheated journal bearing |
| Statistics | |
| Trains | 1 |
| Crew | 2 |
| Deaths | 0 |
The Mississauga train derailment of 1979, also known as the Missisauga Miracle occurred on Saturday, November 10, 1979, in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, when a 106-car Canadian Pacific freight train carrying chemicals and explosives including Styrene, Tolvene, Propane, Caustic Soda, and Chlorine from Windsor, Ontario derailed near the intersection of Mavis Road and Dundas Street in Mississauga, Ontario. As a result of the derailment, more than 200,000 people were evacuated in what was the largest peacetime evacuation in North America until the New Orleans evacuation of 2005. There were no deaths resulting from the incident. This was the last major explosion in the Greater Toronto Area until the Sunrise Propane blast in 2008.
On the 33rd car, heat began to build up in an improperly-lubricated journal bearing on one of the wheels, one of the few still in use at that time as most had long since been replaced with roller bearings, resulting in the condition known among train workers as a "hot box". Residents living beside the tracks reported smoke and sparks coming from the car, and those who were close to Mississauga thought the train was afire. The friction eventually burned through the axle and bearing, and as the train was passing the Burnhamthorpe Road level crossing, a wheelset (one axle and pair of wheels) fell off completely.
At 11:53 p.m., at the Mavis Road crossing, the damaged bogie (undercarriage) left the track, causing the remaining parts of the train to derail. The impact caused several tank cars filled with propane to burst into flames.
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