Colette Roy-Laroche (born August 2, 1943) is a former Canadian politician who served as mayor of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec from 2002 to 2015.[1] She is best known for her handling of the 2013 Lac-Mégantic rail disaster, which earned her the affectionate nickname "The Granite Lady" for her unflappable strength.[2]
Colette Roy-Laroche | |
|---|---|
| Mayor of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, Canada | |
| In office 2002–2015 | |
| Preceded by | Jean Campeau |
| Succeeded by | Jean-Guy Cloutier |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Colette Roy August 2, 1943 Sainte-Cécile-de-Whitton, Quebec, Canada |
| Spouse | Yvan Laroche |
| Occupation | teacher |
Born and raised in the nearby town of Sainte-Cécile-de-Whitton, she moved to Lac-Mégantic at age 17.[3] After a brief marriage to a husband who died of cancer at a young age, she remarried in her 20s to Yvan Laroche, an officer with the Sûreté du Québec.[3] A teacher by career, she rose to become director of the town's school board before being elected mayor in 2002.[1]
Earlier in 2013, Roy-Laroche had announced that she would not run for another term in the 2013 municipal elections.[1] Following the rail disaster, however, the incumbent council's term in office was extended two years so that the town would not have to cope with an election in the middle of the tragedy and its aftermath.[4]
She earned the "Granite Lady" designation in part for her adamant refusal to permit the railway line on which the accident occurred to be rebuilt on its existing path through the downtown core.[5] At least one observer, a Haitian immigrant living in Montreal, praised her as having been more visible and active throughout the crisis than René Préval had been following the 2010 Haiti earthquake.[3] By August 14, just over one month after the accident, the town had preliminary plans in place to rebuild the destroyed downtown.[6]
Roy-Laroche downplayed the praise, telling the media "I am just doing what any mayor would do when faced with disaster. I'm the mayor of a little city of 6,000 people that has to deal with what they're calling the biggest train accident in Canadian history. I was head of the school board, I had to deal with angry parents. That was nothing. I am in great health, I have a lot of energy. My advice is, keep your health, stay in harmony with your family."[7]
In December, when the provincial government of Quebec organized a special ceremony to present the first responders in the disaster with a medal of honour for their service and bravery, Roy-Laroche herself was also named as an honoree.[8]
Through 2014 and 2015, Roy-Laroche took on a public role as an advocate for improved rail safety.[9] In March 2014, she travelled to Washington, D.C., as part of a delegation lobbying the United States Congress to improve American rail safety regulations.[10] Later in 2014, she spoke more openly to the media about the disaster's impact on her; the deceased had included two of her cousins, and had she been able to babysit her grandchildren on the night of the derailment, her son would have been at the Musi-Café as well.[11]
As the special election approached in 2015, Roy-Laroche announced that she would not run for another term as mayor, reconfirming her original announcement of her intention to retire in 2013.[12] Following the special election in November, she was succeeded as mayor by Jean-Guy Cloutier.[13]
References
edit- ^ a b c "Lac-Mégantic mayor praised for efforts to unite town after devastating rail disaster". National Post, July 25, 2013.
- ^ "Lac-Mégantic: ‘We are all together,’ Granite Lady says" Archived 2013-08-22 at the Wayback Machine. Montreal Gazette, September 26, 2013.
- ^ a b c "Roy-Laroche more mère than mayor; Right from the beginning, veteran politician let the town know that she had things under control". Montreal Gazette, August 19, 2013.
- ^ "Council extends mandate of popular mayor". Montreal Gazette, July 15, 2013.
- ^ Luc Larochelle (July 7, 2013). "Plus jamais!". La Tribune (Sherbrooke). Retrieved July 10, 2013.
- ^ "Lac-Megantic forges bold plan to relocate downtown". The Globe and Mail, August 14, 2013.
- ^ "Made of strong stuff - they have to be". National Post, July 13, 2013.
- ^ "First reponders, mayor honoured". The Globe and Mail, December 9, 2013.
- ^ "'It's time to demand changes,' Lac-Megantic mayor says". Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, August 20, 2014.
- ^ "Lac-Megantic mayor pushes rail safety during trip to Washington". Calgary Herald, March 11, 2014.
- ^ "Mayor bares soul about rail tragedy; Leader lost two cousins in derailment but urges fellow citizens 'to move forward'. Halifax Chronicle-Herald, July 2, 2014.
- ^ "Lac-Megantic mayor will not run this fall". Calgary Herald, August 21, 2015.
- ^ "Jean-Guy Cloutier elected mayor of Lac-Mégantic succeeding Colette Roy-Laroche". Montreal Gazette, November 2, 2015.