Govt Sends Medical Experts To Ohio Toxic Waste Train Crash Site As Residents' Safety Concerns Grow

Learn about the chemicals the Ohio train spewed after it derailed 3:23

(CNN) --

President Joe Biden's administration said it is deploying federal medical experts to help assess what dangers remain in an Ohio town where a train carrying hazardous materials derailed this month.

An increase in federal support at the request of the Ohio governor will also be considered as anxious residents point to signs of adverse effects.

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine asked the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the US Department of Health and Human Services on Thursday. to send teams to East Palestine, where the train derailed on February 3, starting a fire that lasted a day.

“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 members of the community have already seen doctors in the area, but remain concerned about their condition and the potential 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 evaluation, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Thursday.

That is in addition to the help provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), according to Jean-Pierre, who said Thursday that the situation of train derailment is "much more expansive" than expected. that FEMA can offer.

• Ohio Chemical Train Derailment: Long-Term Impact and Other Key Points

Balloons are placed next to a sign displaying information for residents to receive air quality testing from the Norfolk Southern Railway on February 16, 2023 in East Palestine, Ohio.

(Credit: Michael Swensen/Getty Images)

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

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An evacuation order was issued for areas near the crash site was lifted on February 8 after authorities said the results of air and water samples led them to consider the area safe, authorities said.

But a chemical stench lingered in some areas, with some residents saying the smell gave them headaches and sore throats.

In addition, officials estimate that thousands of fish died from pollution washing up in streams and rivers.

Questions from residents about safety, some of which were voiced at an emotional community meeting on Wednesday, were the crews' decision to carry out controlled detonations on February 6 of some tanks carrying toxic chemicals to prevent a further explosion. dangerous.

Although a larger explosion was averted, the detonations essentially released chemicals into the air, including vinyl chloride, which at high levels could cause death and increase the risk of cancer.

On Thursday, the head of the federal Environmental Administration Agency (EPA) visited East Palestine and vowed to use the agency's enforcement authority to hold the train operator, Norfolk Southern, accountable.

“I want the community to know that we hear you, we see you and we will get to the bottom of this,” EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said during a news conference Thursday.

“We are testing for all volatile organic chemicals.

We are testing everything.

We're analyzing everything that was on that train.

So we feel comfortable that we are casting a wide enough net to present an image that will protect the community."

During the visit, Regan observed some of the decontamination efforts underway after the dangerous train derailment.

While the state EPA has primary responsibility for the scene, Regan noted that the federal arm stands ready to provide assistance when needed.

Regan also noted that Norfolk Southern signed a liability notice, acknowledging that the company 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.

• The evacuation order for the toxic train that derailed in Ohio was lifted a week ago, but some are not comfortable going home

Population in Ohio would be exposed to carcinogenic toxins after accident 5:13

At what point is the investigation into the train derailment

Federal transportation investigators are working vigorously to determine what caused the 100-car freight train accident in Ohio, the director of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) 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 after our analysis,” wrote board chairwoman Jennifer Homendy.

“Next: NTSB investigators will thoroughly examine tank cars once decontaminated.

As always, we will issue urgent safety recommendations as necessary."

One of the items under scrutiny is an apparently overheated wheel bearing seen on video before the derailment, the NTSB said.

The apparent overheating began at least 43 minutes before the train derailed, according to a CNN analysis of surveillance video obtained by the network.

At approximately 8:12 p.m. on February 3, sparks from an apparent overheating wheel bearing were seen as the train passed through Salem, Ohio, two surveillance videos obtained by CNN show.

Bright lights and sparks are seen emanating from one of the carriages.

No sparks were seen on surveillance video taken 14 minutes earlier as the train passed through Alliance, Ohio.

The train derailed in eastern Palestine at around 8:55 p.m., some 43 minutes after the sparks were seen in Salem.

It is not clear what caused the overheating and if it is related to the derailment.

THREAD on East Palestine derailment:

First, a message to the community…then a plea to those spreading misinformation.

— Jennifer Homendy (@JenniferHomendy) February 17, 2023

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

Of those, the vinyl chloride gas that caught fire could break down into compounds including hydrogen chloride and phosgene, a chemical weapon used during World War I as a suffocating agent, according to the EPA and CDC.

Vinyl chloride, a volatile organic compound, or VOC, and the most toxic chemical involved in the derailment, is known to cause cancer, attack the liver and can also affect the brain, Maria Doa of the Environmental Defense Fund told CNN.

Residents worry that not everyone is getting the right tests

It is the dangers posed by these chemicals that have made East Palestinian residents nervous for the past two weeks.

At a town hall meeting on Wednesday, East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway addressed the February 6 controlled detonations, saying the only option was to release the chemicals manually or risk further danger to residents.

“There (were) two options: either we detonated those tanks, or they detonated themselves,” Conaway told a group of reporters at Wednesday's meeting.

"If we didn't do that, they were going to explode and we would have shrapnel all over the town."

Jami Cozza, a resident of East Palestine, said he will not return home until it is safe.

Cozza told CNN that he is staying at a hotel paid for by the train company due to the toxicity in his house.

Cozza explained that the train company told him it was safe to return home after conducting air tests.

She insisted that the company do soil and water tests, and only then did a toxicologist deem her house unsafe.

"If I hadn't used my voice, if I hadn't had a seizure, I would be sitting in that house right now when they told me it was safe," Cozza said Thursday, adding that she is concerned that not all residents are receiving the appropriate level of proof.

Cozza noted that the company also offered to pay all of her moving expenses.

"It's not about money. It's about our house," she said.

Representatives of the train operator, Norfolk Southern, did not attend the community meeting on Wednesday, citing security concerns after it said employees were threatened, further escalating tensions.

Despite the company's absence, the mayor said the operator has been collaborating with local officials "tremendously."

Earlier this week, Norfolk Southern said it plans to create a $1 million charitable fund to support the East Palestine community.

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