Norfolk Southern and the East Palestine, Ohio, Chemicals Accident After a Train Collision Derailed on February 3, 2009: Community Meeting Summary

The air was so chlorineous this week that a fumes quickly tore the throats and eyes of the person who was raising two children.

Health concerns are lingering in East Palestine, Ohio, after a train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed on February 3. The controlled burn of the chemicals caused a big cloud of black smoke to billow from the sky.

Some residents in the village of 5,000 refuse to return because the water, air, soil, and surfaces there are not safe, despite the lifting of the order last week.

Norfolk Southern was not attending the open house because of a physical threat to its employees and members of the community, according to a statement.

The company said in a release that it had become increasingly concerned about the physical threat to their employees and members of the community as a result of the increase in the participation of outside parties.

Company officials had hoped to get together with local leaders Wednesday evening to update them on the steps they are taking to clean up the accident site and to provide the latest results from water and air testing.

A community meeting was scheduled to take place Wednesday evening and residents were invited to discuss the accident with the attorneys before the meeting.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s latest test of water wells in the East Palestine village of Palermo after the Decay of the Derailment

Since the derailment, many residents in East Palestine remain plagued with anxiety. Velez is spending a lot of money to try and keep his family away from where he used to call home.

“My wife is a nurse and is not taking any chances exposing us and our two young children to whatever is now in our town,” Velez wrote on Facebook. “The risk and anxiety of trying to live in our own home again is not worth it.”

The state’s Environmental Protection Agency said Wednesday that the latest tests show water from five wells supplying the village’s drinking water are free from contaminants. Private water wells are closer to the surface so they should be tested by the EPA.

The area was deemed safe after the air and water samples were taken, five days after the derailment.

A document released by the Environmental Protection Agency says that potentially contaminated soil has not yet been removed from the site so that toxic materials do not get further dispersed into the environment.

Maria Doa of the Environmental Defense Fund told CNN thatVinyl Chloride is a toxic chemical that can cause cancer, attack the liver, and possibly affect the brain.

Cleanup and monitoring of the site could take years, Kurt Kohler of the Ohio EPA’s Office of Emergency Response said February 8, vowing that after the emergency response, “Ohio EPA is going to remain involved through our other divisions that oversee the long-term cleanup of these kinds of spill.” The administrator for the federal EPA said that they would do everything they could to protect the community.

In a document sent to the EPA and recently made public by the agency, a company contracted by Norfolk Southern for cleanup efforts did not list soil removal among completed activities.

Richard Peltier of the University of Massachusetts atAmherst said contaminated soil will be leeched into the environment by the air and ground. There will be a lot of new contaminants when it rains.

CNN asked Norfolk Southern if it had filled in the areas that had been polluted before it reopened the rail line.

Ben Ratner, the Ratner Effects and the Norfolk-South Assistance after the Eleven-Day East Palestine Train Derailment

East Palestine resident Ben Ratner and his family worry about the longer-term risks that environmental officials are only beginning to assess, he told CNN this week.

The Ratner home, for instance, was tested and cleared for VOCs, he said. In a Monday news update, the EPA said that no chemical detections were found in the air of 291 homes that it screened for hazardous chemicals, with 181 more homes to go.

The effects of the train crash were felt by the filmmakers who played extras in the film, and they are still not sure what to think, said Ben, who owns a cafe a few towns.

He said it is hard to make an investment in things like that and feel good about paying our mortgage when there might not be any value in the future. “That’s something tough to come to grips with.”

As of Tuesday evening, Norfolk Southern has distributed more than $1.5 million in direct financial assistance to more than 1,000 families and some businesses to cover costs related to the evacuation, the company said Wednesday in a news release.

Norfolk Southern President and CEO Alan Shaw said in a statement that they would be judged by their actions. “We are cleaning up the site in an environmentally responsible way, reimbursing residents affected by the derailment, and working with members of the community to identify what is needed to help East Palestine recover and thrive.”

Air Quality in East Palestine: EPA, VA, Norfolk Southern, and the Ohio Department of Respiratory and Terrestrial Ecology on a Low Level

The EPA has collected air samples in the East Palestine community to check for pollutants, as well as the Ohio National Guard and a Norfolk Southern contractor. The results of air monitoring can be found at the EPA website and include instruments with a range of measures and each saying that their screening level had not been exceeded.

Velez and his family are temporarily staying in rentals away from the town. He previously stated that when he was in the town Monday, a chemical odor burning his eyes and throat gave him a headaches.

The Ohio Health Director said Tuesday that air quality did not seem to be a cause of headaches and sore throats among people or the death of animals in and around the derailed train area.

State and federal officials have repeatedly said that air monitoring hasn’t detected any concerns despite the misinformation spread online. Ohio’s health director stated Tuesday that even low levels of contaminants can cause odors and symptoms such as headaches.

“Anecdotes are challenging because they’re anecdotes,” Vanderhoff said. All of the things we have gathered thus far is pointing toward very low measurement.

Is Your Home Worthless? When I Learned to Stop Smellin, Get Off the Phone and Go to FundMe

According to James Lee of the Ohio EPA, “Residents in the area and many miles away could smell odors coming from the site.” Some substances in the case have a low odor threshold. This means people may smell these contaminants at levels much lower than what is considered hazardous.”

Ben said that the family is limiting water use because of unknown affects. Velez wrote that his daughter could potentially become hazardous if they turn the water on or give her a bath.

“Fire combustion chemicals” flowed to the Ohio River, “but the Ohio River is very large, and it’s a water body that’s able to dilute the pollutants pretty quickly,” Kavalec said. The Ohio EPA has tracked the chemicals in real time and believes that they are moving about a mile an hour.

The majority of the chemicals can pass through the drinking water intakes if they are closed. This strategy, along with drinking water treatment … are both effective at addressing these contaminants and helps ensure the safety of the drinking water supplies,” Kavalec said, adding they’re pretty confident “low levels” of contaminants that remain are not getting to customers.

He and his family have been Airbnb-hopping 30 minutes from their home since they evacuated, but rental options and their finances are running out, he said, and a friend set up a GoFundMe to help the family.

“Unfortunately, many of us residents are stuck in the same situation and the sad truth is that there is no answer,” he wrote. There is only one viable option to leave and pay a mortgage on a potentially worthless home.

The Ohio village upended by a freight train: Concerns about air and water safety, poisonous chemicals, and fires, and their demands for answers from Norfolk Southern

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — Residents of the Ohio village upended by a freight train derailment packed a school gym on Wednesday to seek answers about whether they were safe from toxic chemicals that spilled or were burned off.

Hundreds of worried people gathered to hear state officials tell them — as they did earlier in the day — that testing so far has shown local air is safe to breathe and to promise that safety testing of the air and water would continue.

But residents had many questions over health hazards and they demanded more transparency from the railroad operator, Norfolk Southern, which did not attend the gathering, citing safety concerns for its staff.

Wednesday’s meeting came amid continuing concerns about the huge plumes of smoke, persisting odors, questions over potential threats to pets and wild animals, any potential impact on drinking water and what was happening with cleanup.

Why are they keeping their identity a secret? Kathy told her story about the railroad. They are not here answering questions, and they aren’t out here supporting. We did not know what the train had until three days after it left.

In and around East Palestine, near the Pennsylvania state line, residents said they wanted assistance navigating the financial help the railroad offered hundreds of families who evacuated, and they want to know whether it will be held responsible for what happened.

“The pollution, which continues to contaminate the area around East Palestine, created a nuisance, damage to natural resources and caused environmental harm,” Yost said in a letter to the company.

Despite the assurances, a chemical odor lingered days afterward and officials estimate thousands of fish were killed by contamination washing down streams and rivers, fueling residents’ concerns about water and air safety.

The Norfolk Southern Railroad Engine in East Palestine, Ohio, Will be notified by the National Transportation Safety Board on February 3rd, 2018, as instructed by President Mike DeWine

The National Transportation Safety Board released a preliminary report on the train wreck on February 3rd in Ohio that concluded that the wreck was completely preventable, and now investigators will examine the procedures and practices before the wreck.

On Thursday, the head of the US Environmental Protection Agency traveled to East Palestine, Ohio, and said the agency planned to hold Norfolk Southern accountable for its role in the train wreck.

The EPA has the authority to use its enforcement capabilities over this crisis, according to Administrator Michael S. Regan.

There was a sign of accountability to the company, which they signed, which said they would be responsible for the clean up, Regan told CNN. “But as this investigation continues, and as new facts arise, let me just say, and be very clear, I will use the full enforcement authority of this agency, and so will the federal government, to be sure that this company is held accountable.”

As locals of East Palestine feel sick and worry about their health because of the Norfolk Southern train wreck earlier this month, this latest step comes as a result.

Hundreds of East Palestine residents attended a town hall Wednesday night to express their frustrations and mounting distrust. The train operator pulled out of the event after agreeing to attend due to safety concerns.

During the visit, Regan saw some of the work that had been done to repair the train wreck. The federal arm is ready to help when needed, and the state EPA has primary responsibility over the scene.

“I want the community to know that we hear you, we see you, and that we will get to the bottom of this,” EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said Thursday during a news conference. All volatile organic chemicals are being tested. We’re testing for everything. We’re testing for everything that was on that train. So, we feel comfortable that we are casting a net wide enough to present a picture that will protect the community.”

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine on Thursday asked the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the US Department of Health and Human Services to send teams to East Palestine, where the train derailed February 3 and sparked a dayslong blaze.

Emergency response teams will be prepared in the event of a rain event to keep contaminants not removed from the site from washing into local waterways.

DeWine said the Ohio Department of Agriculture continues to assure Ohioans that its food supply is safe and the risk to livestock remains low following the train derailment.

The decision to blow up some of the tanks carrying toxic chemicals to prevent a bigger explosion was one of many questions residents asked at an emotional community meeting Wednesday. Though a larger blast was averted, the detonations essentially released chemicals into the air, including vinyl chloride that at high levels could kill and increase cancer risk.

“We don’t need a train to go home”: A statement of Mr. Conaway, the city’s mayor, and a frustrated citizen

Conaway told reporters that he needed help. “I have the village on my back, and I’ll do whatever it takes … to make this right. I am staying, and I am not going anywhere.

A man who lives less than half a mile from where the train derailed tells CNN that the absence of the company at the meeting was a slap in the face.

“Most people did not want to go home, but they had to. He said that all the people who had to go home had complains of sickness, and smelled things in their throat. The smell makes you sick, I have gone back a few times. It hurts your head.

“I was extremely disappointed that they didn’t show up at the town hall meeting last night. The public deserves transparency,” he said. The public needs the most up-to-date information. It is our job to hold the company accountable and I promise you we will do that.

CDC’s response to the Cleveland train disaster: How much public health testing does a person need to live in and how to survive in these areas?

Speaking to CNN’s Don Lemon, Cozza said the railroad company told her it was safe to return home after conducting air testing. She demanded the railroad company test her house and then a toxicologist decided that it wasn’t safe.

“Had I not used my voice, had I not thrown a fit, I would be sitting in that house right now, when they told me that it was safe,” Cozza said Thursday.

She’s worried about how many children are laying in their bed in East Palestine right now. “I absolutely do not trust them.”

In the wake of a train carrying hazardous materials derailing in Ohio, the Biden administration has sent federal medical experts to help assess the risks and is ramping up federal support at the request of the governor.

DeWine wrote to the CDC stating that the request for medical experts was not limited to physicians and behavioral health specialists. “Some community members have already seen physicians in the area but remain concerned about their condition and possible health effects – both short- and long-term.”

The White House said that the request was approved by the Biden administration and that teams from both federal agencies were deployed to help with public health testing.

Jean-Pierre noted Thursday that the train situation is much more expansive than what FEMA can offer and that additional aid is also being provided.

The federal support boost to a community of some 5,000 people along the Ohio-Pennsylvania state line comes amid some residents’ growing concerns that some areas may not be safe to live in.

A lot of these people that don’t have municipal water supplies rely on wells. And I think their biggest concern is: over time, are the chemicals that were dissipated throughout all this getting into the waterways? They are not sure if they will make it to the well water.

An Environmental Agency Commissioner on Twitter urged not to speculate about the cause of the east Palestine friday crash from railings to aviation and rails

The head of the Environmental Agency Administration was in East Palestine this week and made sure to assure residents that the agency has their backs.

Regan also noted that the train operator, Norfolk Southern, has signed a notice of accountability, acknowledging they will be responsible for the cleanup.

Meanwhile, another train operated by Norfolk Southern derailed Thursday morning in Michigan’s Van Buren Charter Township, and local officials said there was no evidence the area was exposed to hazardous materials.

First responders arrived at the crash location around 8:30 a.m. and found around 30 rail cars had derailed. Van Buren Township Public Safety said that one of the overturned rail cars contained agricultural grain while the others were empty.

Federal transportation investigators are working vigorously to determine what caused the 100-car freight train to crash in Ohio, the head of the National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday in a thread of tweets.

“You have my personal commitment that the NTSB will CONTINUE to share all information publicly as soon as possible following our analysis,” board chairwoman Jennifer Homendy wrote. Once decontaminated, the tank cars will be thoroughly examined by the investigators. We will always issue urgent safety recommendations.

Homendy, whose agency is responsible for investigating various transportation crashes from aviation to railways, implored the public on Twitter not to speculate about the cause of the crash.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/17/us/ohio-train-derailment-east-palestine-friday/index.html

The East Palestine train wreck incident occurred during February 6 evection of a dirty war zone by the U.S. President Joe Biden

The train was carrying a range of toxic materials, including vinyl chloride, ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, ethylhexyl acrylate, isobutylene and butyl acrylate, the US Environmental Protection Agency has said.

During an intense community town hall meeting Wednesday in a high school gym, East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway addressed the February 6 controlled detonations, saying the only option was to release the chemicals manually or risk greater danger to residents.

“Yes, harmful chemicals went into the air. I am truly sorry, but that is the only option we had. They were going to blow up if we didn’t do that, and our shrapnel was going to be all over the town.

A resident of East Palestine who attended a meeting and spoke out about her family’s issues said she won’t return to her home until the train is safe. Cozza told CNN she was staying at a hotel funded by the train company due to the toxicity she experienced in her home.

Those payments are in addition to the company’s offer to reimburse expenses related to residents evacuating during the incident, which includes the costs of hotels stays, food and more, company spokesperson Connor Spielmaker said.

The former President went to the site of a train wreck in East Palestine, Ohio, 19 days after it happened, and criticized the handling of the disaster by President Joe Biden.

Trump went to one of the most conservative regions of the deep-red state with many of the hallmarks of apresidential visit, as he sought to contrast himself with Biden who on Monday made a historic war zone trip to Ukraine’s capital.

How did the former president of East Palestine visit Ukraine? The slap in the face of Biden, the EPA administrator, and his advisers

Trump said that you are not forgotten. We are with you. We are praying for you. And we will stand with you and your fight to help ensure the accountability that you deserve.”

The former president’s Ohio trip came as the 2024 GOP presidential race begins to take shape, with intra-party rivals lining up to take on Trump. Other Republicans did not like Biden’s response to the train wreck.

Trump pointed to the announcement of his visit to Ohio as a reason why the federal response to the town was so different than the argument between Democrats and Republicans.

He said that the FEMA announcement should have come at least two weeks earlier or a week earlier.

The water bottles came from the former president’s hotel properties, and some of them had the “Trump” logo on them. He said some of the water had come on the plane he had flown from Florida on Wednesday.

Trump ended a 2015 Obama-era regulation mandating for trains carrying “large volumes of flammable liquids” like crude oil to have advanced brakes and speed restrictions – put in place after a number of deadly derailments.

The transportation secretary said a lot of people in the area find political opportunity by fighting safety regulations on railroads and hazmat. “If people are going to find religion about rail regulation, sometimes for the first time, I welcome that.”

But there’s no evidence that would have prevented this particular derailment. Safety advocates have also said DOT has been slow to respond and and that it could have reinstituted the rules when Biden became president, but didn’t.

Republicans have largely ignored this argument, and instead bashed the slow response from the federal government, with some conservative commentators insinuating the pace was because residents in East Palestine are GOP voters.

“That was the biggest slap in the face that tells you right now he doesn’t care about us,” East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway, a Republican, said of Biden’s trip to Ukraine earlier this week on Fox News. “I found that out this morning in one of the briefings that he was in the Ukraine giving millions of dollars away to people over there and not to us and I’m furious.”

According to one Trump adviser, the EPA Administrator changed his schedule and went to East Palestine because they had already accomplished many of their objectives before they got there.

Proia: A Pulmonologist in East Palestine and a Clinical Professor at Northeast Ohio Medical University, speaking with Josh Shapiro, the Pennsylvania Governor, and what now

Who is he? Nicholas Proia is a pulmonologist in East Palestine and is also a clinical professor of internal medicine at Northeast Ohio Medical University.

What are the people talking about? The doctor hadn’t experienced it but was bracing for a rise in patients after the derailment and controlled burn.

Respiratory illness is not something that we have seen a lot of. What we have heard, mostly through the media, and a few patients will say, perhaps a rash or a foul smell. But really no overt shortness of breath, or respiratory failure has been connected to this.

It’s also important to remember that you’re only looking for what you need. And who knows what else is out there, especially after a large fire with a bunch of different, pretty interesting chemicals.

Meanwhile, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro is furious with Norfolk Southern, telling NPR on Wednesday that it had “given the middle finger to the good people of Pennsylvania and Ohio” in the way it had handled its response. He said the authorities on his side of the border would keep an eye on water.

So, what now? Norfolk Southern had to pay for the EPA’s work, even if it was for the agency’s plan, because the agency now has control of the polluted area.

The Buttigieg-Biden Journey Towards East Palestine: What Happens When a Train Starts to Scattering

Seeing a political opportunity, former President Donald Trump and a cadre of other conservatives descended on the small town of fewer than 5,000 residents. Trump gave out campaign hats, “Trump” branded water, and Trump branded insinuations of the Biden administration. Pete Buttigieg went there too, met with local leaders and offered his own rejoinders to the former president.

People in town are concerned about the long-term health of the air and water they drink because of short-term politics.

East Palestine is in a county that voted overwhelmingly for Trump in the 2020 presidential election, and conservatives have held up the community as something of an example of the kinds of people the political parties value.

“The community has shown the tough and resilient heart of America,” Trump said, “and that’s what it is — this is really America right here. We’re in America.

There have been pitched battles in recent years, at a time when the country is in the midst of a political realignment that largely centers on education and geography, over what “real America” is and who “real Americans” are.

In the three weeks after the disaster happened, Secretary Buttigieg made the trek to East Palestine to see the damage.

The message the administration is sending is that they don’t care and that is what leaders show up to do, according to Rep. Bill Johnson.

Biden said Friday that he had no immediate plans to visit, but pointed out that administration officials were on the ground within “two hours” of the derailment. The White House has said that the president was in communication with Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, as well as with Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.

Biden said they were there two hours after the train went down. I have spoken with every single major figure in both Pennsylvania and Ohio, and so the idea that we’re not engaged is simply not there. And initially, there was not a request for me to go out even before I was heading over to Kyiv, so I’m keeping very close tabs on it. We are doing everything we can.

The New York Post-Newtonian Rail Safety Report on Reply to the Mayor, Michael Regan: “It’s Time for a New Look”

Michael Regan, the administrator of the EPA, traveled to East Palestine earlier this month and criticized the railroad Norfolk Southern for not showing up.

“They have to show up and they have to apologize to this community,” Regan told All Things Considered this week. They caused the mess. They have to clean it up. And they have to prove to us and to the community that they’re genuine in all of the declarations that they’ve made. Not showing up to public meetings is not a good way to start.

The lack of trust in the federal government was something that was brought to Regan’s attention by the community after the disaster.

While in town, Buttigieg called for stronger rail safety rules while fielding questions from reporters and swatting back at Trump.

Even if that particular rule wouldn’t have prevented this, other safety measures could have, said Jennifer Homendy, chair of the National Transportation Safety Board.

But conservatives, who have descended on the town or called out Biden from afar for not being there in person yet, haven’t offered much in the way of real solutions to prevent these kinds of disasters in the future — like any regulations they might support, which the industry has lobbied against.

“Enough with the politics,” Homendy said. “I don’t understand why this has gotten so political. This is a community that is suffering. This is not about politics. This is about addressing their needs, their concerns. That’s what this should be about.”

Door to Door Health Surveys at East Palestine, Ohio, as a Part of the Transportation and Health Response to a Toxic Train Wreck

The federal teams are going door to door in East Palestine, Ohio, as part of the government’s response to a toxic train accident that has caused alarm about the safety of the air and water in the town.

The teams are providing flyers and completing surveys after the President directed the move, according to an official.

CNN obtained a flyer that contained emergency resources for residents as well as information about how to schedule a free health assessment or arrange testing for private wells. The next public meeting on the train wreck will take place at the Palestine High School auditorium at 6 p.m. March 2.

The flyers are being handed out by members of the EPA, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with the goal of reaching 400 homes by Monday, according to the White House official. The health surveys are being conducted by the CDC.

Biden on Friday directed agencies to go door-to-door to check in with residents after he received an update on the federal government’s response to the derailment from senior officials, including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and the heads of the EPA and FEMA, according to the official.