LAC-MEGANTIC, Quebec (AP) — Some 40 people are still missing, two days after a runaway oil tanker train ignited explosions and fires in the Quebec town of Lac-Megantic.

Five people have been confirmed dead, but officials say the death toll is likely to rise. All but one of the train’s 73 tanker cars were carrying oil when they somehow came loose early Saturday morning.

Police Lieutenant Michel Brunet would not say how many people might be missing after the 73-car train derailed early Saturday in the town of Lac-Megantic, about 155 miles east of Montreal.

Officials say the explosions and fire destroyed a large part of the town’s downtown area. Up to 1,000 people were forced from their homes in the town.

Witnesses say the eruptions sent many local residents scrambling through the streets under the intense heat of towering fireballs and a red glow that illuminated the night sky.