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After a drama-filled day due to a death on board and a health scare, passengers on a Via train that was stopped and quarantined in northeastern Ontario have resumed their journey.

The train was stopped near the town of Foleyet, about 760 kilometers north of its destination Toronto, after a woman was found dead in a bathroom of the train. It was feared she may have died from an infectious disease and health officials quarantined the passengers and crew Friday morning.

Later in the day, following a tense few hours for passengers, townspeople, and health officials across the province, Ontario's chief medical health officer said the woman "most likely did not have an infectious disease."

Six other people, including a person who was airlifted to hospital Friday with what were reported to be "flu like symptoms," also did not appear to be infectious, said Dr. David Williams at a press conference Friday afternoon.

Williams also reported that the sick passengers did not appear to have been in contact with the 60-year-old woman who died. He also noted that no tests had been done on the deceased woman and the cause of death had not been determined.

Williams said that lab tests were done on the sick passengers and a number of infectious ailments were ruled out. He also said that those passengers said they felt unwell before getting on the train.

Late Friday, the dead woman's body was taken off the train.

Deborah DesRochers, chairwoman of Foleyet, told Â鶹ӰÊÓnet late Friday evening that the townspeople never expected that they would become the focus of national attention and wind up in the midst of a health scare.

"The not knowing was scary," DesRochers said. "You can only imagine what those people on the train had to endure."

Many of them took things in stride, with one saying, "it wasn't that bad" and the biggest concern was that passengers "just didn't know what was going on" for much of the day.

The Via Rail passenger train, carrying more than 270 people, was quarantined after officials notified police of a medical emergency on Friday morning.

As many as 10 passengers fell ill, suffering from flu-like symptoms.

Earlier in the day, Const. Marc Depatie had said that it was the "totality" of the circumstances that led police to believe the death and illnesses are not linked.

Authorities had said the woman was feeling unwell when she got on the train in Jasper, Alta., as part of a group of tourists.

"The woman who had expired made her way onto the train with pre-existing health issues,'' Depatie had said before Williams held his press conference. She was found dead by a doctor who was checking up on her.

The train had been en route from Vancouver to Toronto, where it's expected to arrive Saturday morning.

The passenger who was airlifted to hospital was diagnosed with a respiratory illness and is now in stable condition, Ontario Provincial Police Staff Sgt. Rob Knox reported.

The remaining five sick passengers -- all of them tourists from Australia -- are said to be in good spirits and stable condition. They were on the train when it resumed its journey.

A spokeswoman for Via Rail told CP that the train departed Vancouver three days ago and hadn't reported any problems before Friday. For much of the day after the train had stopped, only emergency response personnel were being allowed on or off the train. A CN Rail sleep station had also been evacuated.

Foleyet is a town of 380 about 100 kilometres southwest of Timmins.