Each tanker carried 30,000 gallons (113,000 liters) of crude oil. Four cars caught fire and exploded in a orange and black fireball that mushroomed hundreds of feet into the air and flattened dozens of buildings, including a popular bar.
The official death toll has grown to five in Lac-Mégantic, Que., after a derailed train carrying crude oil exploded in the town's core, levelling buildings and forcing as many as 2,000 people from their homes.
Quebec provincial police said two more bodies were discovered Sunday morning, in addition to the three that were found the night before in the hardest-hit area in the centre of town.
Police say about 40 people have been reported missing by immediate family members in the town of about 6,000 people, located roughly 250 kilometres east of Montreal
The bodies have been transported to Montreal for autopsy. Police would not confirm any details about the deceased or where exactly they were located, saying families are still being contacted.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper visited the site of the blasts on July 7,2013 Sunday, describing it as a "war zone."
Montreal, Maine & Atlantic, which owns the line, said it was still investigating the cause of the accident, but offered one possible explanation of how the air brakes on the locomotive holding the train in position could have been released.
The firm said the release might be linked to how the locomotive was shut down when the train was parked at Nantes Station, about 12 km (8 miles) west of Lac-Megantic, on Friday night.
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