The EPA will hold the train company accountable for the Ohio train disaster
The Norfolk Southern Railroad Commission’s open house meeting on toxic chemicals in the East Palestinine region canceled by a train wreck incident
The people of EAST PALESTINE have questions about whether they’re safe from the toxic chemicals that were spilled or burned off during the train wreck.
State officials told worried people that testing so far has shown the air and water are safe to breathe in, and that more testing would be done.
Representatives of Norfolk Southern planned to give information to residents about how they are responding to the chemical crisis at the meeting. But the company backed out, citing threats against its employees.
Norfolk Southern was not attending the open house because of a growing physical threat to its employees and members of the community, according to a statement.
Concerns over potential threats to pets and wild animals, odors, and potential impact on drinking water are some of the issues raised in Wednesday’s meeting.
Why are the people around East Palestine being hush-hush? A public awareness campaign to end the environmental harm caused by pollution on the East Palestine Railroad
“Why are they being hush-hush?” Kathy Dyke said of the railroad. They aren’t out here answering questions and they aren’t out here supporting. For three days we didn’t even know what was on the train.”
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.
In a letter to the company, Yost said that the pollution caused environmental harm and created a nuisance around East Palestine.
Water from the municipal system, which comes from five deep wells, is safe to drink, state officials have consistently said. However, the state’s EPA encouraged residents who get water from private wells to get that water tested, the governor’s office said.
Despite the assurances, a chemical smell lingered days after the event and officials say thousands of fish were killed by water and air pollution.
Norfolk Southern announced Tuesday that it is creating a $1 million fund to help the community of some 4,700 people while continuing remediation work, including removing spilled contaminants from the ground and streams and monitoring air quality.
Alan Shaw, President and CEO of Norfolk Southern, said that they would be judged by their actions. We’re cleaning up the site in a way that’s responsible and we’re also helping the people of East Palestine recover and thrive.
The Norfolk Southern Railroad Disaster of February 3, 2003: EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan apologizes to Norfolk Southern for a train accident in Salem, Ohio
The EPA and the CDC say the vinylchloride gas that caught fire could end up being a chemical weapon used during the first world war. Maria Doa of the Environmental Defense Fund told CNN that vinylchloride is known to cause cancer, attacking theliver, and can also affect the brain.
The train passed through Salem, Ohio at around 8:11PM on February 3 and there were sparks from a wheel bearing overheating. A rail car is emitting bright light and sparks.
State and federal officials have repeatedly said air monitoring has not detected any remaining concerns despite the spread of misinformation on the internet. Ohio’s health director said Tuesday that even low levels of contaminants can create residual odors or headaches when they are not considered hazardous.
The head of the US Environmental Protection Agency traveled to East Palestine, Ohio, on Thursday and said the agency plans to hold the train company Norfolk Southern accountable for its role in the derailment of a train carrying hazardous chemicals earlier this month.
Speaking to CNN’s Jason Carroll Thursday morning, EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said the agency has full authority to use its enforcement capabilities over the crisis.
“We issued a notice of accountability to the company, and they’ve signed that, indicating that they will be responsible for the cleanup,” 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.”
Taming the Fate of East Palestine: State Remediation after the Derailment of a Heavy-Ion Train, and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine
Hundreds of East Palestine residents attended a town hall Wednesday night to express their frustrations and mounting distrust. The operator of the train had agreed to be at the event, but withdrew due to safety concerns.
During the visit, Regan observed some of the ongoing remediation efforts following the hazardous train derailment. Regan noted that the federal arm is prepared to provide aid when needed, since the state EPA takes the primary responsibility.
We are testing the entire train for toxic chemicals that were on it. We have the capabilities to detect every single adverse impact that would result from that spill, and that’s what we’re doing,” he said.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine asked the CDC to immediately send doctors to East Palestine to evaluate and help members of the community with questions or health symptoms.
In anticipation of rainfall, emergency response teams have plans in place to prevent contaminants not yet removed from the derailment site from washing into local waterways during the storms, DeWine said in a statement.
The governor said that abutyl acrylate will be in Huntington, West Virginia, sometime tomorrow. The chemical is currently below what the CDC deems a hazardous level, he said. He noted that no vinyl chloride had been detected in the Ohio River and agencies would continue sampling river water out of caution.
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.
When Is The City Safe? Lenny Glavan, an East Palestine resident, told CNN: “I’m not going anywhere”
“Is it OK to still be here? Is my kids safe? The people are at risk. Is the community safe? East Palestine resident Lenny Glavan told reporters at the meeting. We are all aware of the severity of the question and what it means. Some people think they are downplaying; some people don’t think so – let’s find out.”
The decision to conduct detonations of some of the tanks carrying toxic chemicals which could kill at high levels and increase cancer risk prompted further questions about the safety of the area.
“I need help,” Conaway told reporters Wednesday night. “I have the village on my back, and I’ll do whatever it takes … to make this right. I’m not leaving and I’m not going anywhere.
The company said in a release that they were concerned about the physical threat to their employees and members of the community due to the increasing likelihood of outside parties.
Velez told CNN that the company’s absence from the meeting was “a slap in the face,” because he lives less than half a mile from where the train derailed.
Velez and his family are temporarily staying in rentals away from the town. He previously told CNN that when he visited the town Monday, a chemical odor left his eyes and throat burning, and gave him a nagging headache.
Some people wanted to go home, but they had to. He said that all the people who had to go home complained of smells, headaches, and sickness. “I have gone back a few times, and the smell does make you sick. It hurts your head.
The East Palestine Train Accident Survivor Jami Cozza: Why did the train derailing in Ohio last month happen to derrail and how does FEMA respond?
“I was extremely disappointed that they didn’t show up at the town hall meeting last night. The public has a right to be transparent, he said. “The public deserves to have the latest information. We have a duty as the federal government to hold this company accountable.
While her family has lived in East Palestine for many years near the contaminated creek, Jami Cozza is staying at a hotel due to the toxicity of the train wreck.
She explained that the train company told her it was a good idea to return home. She demanded that the company do soil and water tests and only after did the toxicologist deem her house unsafe.
Cozza said that had he not thrown a fit, he might have been sitting in that house right now.
In the wake of a train carrying hazardous materials derailing in Ohio, the federal government has put in place experts to help assess the risk, while the governor requested more federal support.
“This request for medical experts includes, but is not limited to, physicians and behavioral health specialists,” DeWine wrote in a letter to the CDC. “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 Biden administration approved the request and began deploying teams from both federal agencies in part for public health testing and assessments, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Thursday.
That is in addition to aid the Federal Emergency Management Agency is providing, according to Jean-Pierre, who noted Thursday that the train derailment situation is “much more expansive” than what FEMA can offer.
Some residents along the Ohio-Pennsylvania state line have become concerned about the safety of living in some areas, which has given the federal support boost a boost.
Investigating the Ohio Railroad Collision at East Palestine: A Clean and Clean Environment Assessment of the Van Buren County Area after the Norfolk Southern Railroad Derailed Thursday
An evacuation order that was in place for areas near the crash site was lifted February 8 after officials said air and water sample results led them to deem the area safe, officials said.
Some residents in the area said the chemical smell left them with headaches and throat pains. Officials believe that thousands of fish were killed due to polluted water.
On Thursday, the head of the federal Environmental Agency Administration visited East Palestine and made it a point to assure residents that the agency has their backs.
Norfolk Southern signed a accountability document acknowledging they will be responsible for the clean up.
There was no evidence that the Van Buren Charter Township area was exposed to hazardous materials after the Norfolk Southern train derailed Thursday morning.
Around 30 rail cars were derailed when the first responders arrived. Van Buren Township public safety said that one of the overturned rail cars was filled with agricultural grain.
The head of the National Transportation Safety Board said in a thread that investigators are working hard to determine the cause of the Ohio train crash.
The board chairwoman wrote that she is committed to sharing all information publicly as soon as possible. Once decontaminated, the tank cars will be thoroughly examined by the investigators. As always, we’ll issue urgent safety recommendations as needed.”
The agency Homendy works for is the one responsible for investigating aviation, railways, and other transportation crashes.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/17/us/ohio-train-derailment-east-palestine-friday/index.html
When EPA discovered it, residents were warned against releasing the poisons that had been released,” East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway told a community meeting
The train was carrying a range of toxic materials, the EPA 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 sorry, but that was the only other choice we had. They were going to blow up if we didn’t do that, and we were going to have shrapnel all over the town.
Expenses related to residents evacuating during the incident, which include the costs of hotels stays, food and more, will be reimbursed by the company.
