The 47 people killed in a train explosion in Lac-Megantic, Quebec, were remembered at a small gathering in Congress Square Sunday morning.

Fifteen environmental activists from 350 Maine, a group that opposes fossil fuels, the Allen Avenue Unitarian Universalist Church and other organizations read off the names of those killed in the disaster when a runaway train carrying 72 cars of crude oil from the Bakken shale region derailed in the center of town.

Additional Images

Dan Wood of South Portland helps to hang 26 portraits, painted by Lee Chisholm of Freeport, representing 26 of the 47 victims of the Lac-Megantic train disaster on Sunday, the first anniversary. Religious and environmental activists held a vigil in Congress Square Park to remember the victims of the Lac-Megantic train disaster. Jill Brady/Staff Photographer

Related Headlines

• Quebec remembers victims of oil train disaster

Similar vigils marking the anniversary of the explosion which happened at 1:15 a.m. July 6, 2013 are taking place in the United States and Canada.