A Hidden Report & Confirmation That Chemicals Spread To 16 States
A Hidden Report & Confirmation That Chemicals Spread To 16 States
More Updates From The East Palestine Train Disaster
Community members in East Palestine, Ohio, have a deadline. Tomorrow, they have to decide whether to accept their share of a $600 million class-action settlement with Norfolk Southern after a toxic train derailment last year forced the evacuation of hundreds of residents.
Accepting that money, which can be up to $25,000 per person for personal injuries (depending on how close they lived to the derailment), means that they would forfeit the right to sue later, if they develop cancer or other serious health troubles due to chemical exposure.
The village with a population of less than 5,000 people sits about a mile from the Pennsylvania border, and more than 50,000 people lived within 10 miles of the crash site.
This decision comes on the heels of a hidden report obtained by The Associated Press that some workers who were cleaning up contaminated creeks around East Palestine became sick. They detailed symptoms such as headaches and nausea and were sent back to their hotels to rest, according to the report.
But these findings were not released to the public last year, despite citizen concerns about the health impacts of exposure to the chemicals that both spilled and burned.
Their symptoms are similar to those experienced by members of the CDC team studying the health risks, who also became sick with chemical exposure while in the area.
The results of the CDC’s Assessment of Chemical Exposure (ACE) for residents conducted just a few weeks after the toxic spill found many health problems related to the incident.
More than 90 percent of the area residents who participated in the survey reported getting headaches and more than 70 percent reporting coughing and eye irritation. Others reported difficulty breathing, congestion or runny nose, and a burning nose or throat. Gaps remain in the public health response.
Study shows 16 states impacted by toxic spill
Meanwhile, a new study came out in June revealing the widespread repercussions of the train accident and the toxic cocktail of chemicals that were released.
“The impacts of the fire were larger in scale and scope than the initial predictions,” the authors found. That includes pollution from burning vinyl chloride, a known carcinogen.
Lead author David Gay, coordinator of the National Atmospheric Deposition Program, said that he was very surprised by the way the chemicals had spread, telling The Washington Post, “I didn’t expect to see an impact this far out.”
Their measurements revealed a large areal impact from the Midwest through the Northeast and likely into Canada, and perhaps as far south as North Carolina, showing that portions of 16 states and about one third of the U.S. population (110 million people) were impacted.
Researchers looked at inorganic compound samples in rain and snow at 260 sites. The highest levels of chloride were found in northern Pennsylvania and near the Canada-New York border, which was downwind from the accident.
The study authors also found “exceptionally high” pH levels in rain as far away as northern Maine. The elevated inorganic chemical levels dropped several weeks after the accident.
NTSB final report
At a hearing in June conducted by The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the cause of the derailment was revealed to be a rail car’s defective wheel bearing.
Also at that hearing, the head of NTSB said that Norfolk Southern repeatedly tried to interfere with the agency’s investigation into the derailment and shape its conclusions about the flawed decision to blow open five tank cars and burn the vinyl chloride inside. Numerous times, the railroad delayed or failed to give investigators information.
You can watch the full NTSB hearing here:
The Railway Safety Act, introduced after this tragic event, has been stalled by the railroad industry lobby and sits idly with Congress. The proposed package of reforms includes requiring two-person crews and setting standards for the inspections and detectors that help prevent derailments.
“This legislation is long overdue,” wrote Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg in April. “It would phase in safer tank cars, require defect detectors, expand the list of hazardous materials that qualify for stricter safety precautions, and more.”
Concerns about the short- and long-term health consequences from this toxic incident are as valid today as they were on the day of this tragic event. Residents deserve to know all the information about their health as they make this important decision about their future.
As I said at the town hall meeting last year, “Communities can handle the truth, what they can’t handle is mistruths, being misled, and lies.”