In East Palestine there is anger over the lack of responses from authorities 0:58
(CNN) --
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has ordered Norfolk Southern to handle all necessary cleanup after a train carrying toxic chemicals derailed in East Palestine, Ohio.
The EPA announced its legally binding order Tuesday, 18 days after the freight train derailment.
The catastrophe started a fire that lasted a day, sent plumes of black smoke into the air and caused the intentional release of vinyl chloride to prevent a more catastrophic explosion.
Ohio Chemical Train Derailment: Long-Term Impact and Other Key Points
Some residents have reported health problems, and some 3,500 fish have died in Ohio's waterways since the accident.
"Norfolk Southern will pay to clean up the mess it has created and the trauma it has inflicted on this community," EPA Administrator Michael Regan told reporters.
As part of EPA's legally binding order, Norfolk Southern will:
Identify and clean up contaminated soil and water resources,
Reimburse EPA for cleanup services that will be provided to residents and businesses to provide an extra layer of peace of mind, and that will be performed by EPA personnel and contractors,
Attend and participate in public meetings at the request of EPA and post information online, and
Pay EPA's costs for work performed under the order.
The order will go into effect this Thursday.
CNN has contacted Norfolk Southern for comment.
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If the rail company doesn't comply with the demands, the EPA said it will step in immediately, carry out the necessary work and then try to force Norfolk Southern to pay triple the cost.
The EPA said it will exercise its strongest authority against the train operator under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA).
"There's no way Norfolk Southern is going to get out of the mess it's created," Regan said.
Governor and EPA chief toast with tap water
From left to right, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, EPA Administrator Michael Regan, and US Representative Bill Johnson drink tap water poured directly from an East Palestine home.
Credit: Pool
Hours before the EPA announcement, Regan and Gov. Mike DeWine visited an East Palestine home and tried to reassure residents that the municipal water supply is safe.
They raised two full glasses of water straight from the tap and toasted before drinking.
The municipal water supply comes from five deep underground wells that are lined with steel, state officials have said.
But residents with private well water should have that water tested before using it, since that water may come from sources closer to the ground surface.
What happened in Ohio with the derailed train that spilled chemicals?
How toxic and dangerous is the spill?
"State and local authorities will continue to take water samples and EPA will continue to test indoor air for residents of the evacuation zone," Regan said Tuesday.
But "I recognize that no matter how much data we collect or provide, it will not be enough to fully reassure everyone," the EPA chief said.
"It may not be enough to restore the sense of safety and security this community once had. But we will work together, day in and day out, for as long as it takes to make sure this community feels like home again." .
Contaminated soil persists in East Palestine
The soil under the railroad tracks at the crash site remains contaminated, and the tracks need to be raised to remove that soil, the director of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday.
The governor acknowledged the residents' concern about the contaminated soil, saying that 3,500 cubic meters of soil and 1.1 million gallons of contaminated water have been removed from East Palestine.
"The railroad put the tracks back in service and the dirt under the tracks hadn't been treated," DeWine said.
"We will have to raise the tracks and remove that land."
Ohio opens new health clinic in East Palestine
To deal with increasing reports of rashes, headaches, nausea and other symptoms in East Palestine, the state has opened a new health clinic for residents.
The health clinic will be staffed by registered nurses, mental health specialists and, on occasion, a toxicologist, the Ohio Department of Health reported.
Medical teams from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the US Department of Health (CDC) are expected to arrive in the community this week to help assess potential hazards. meet.
Authorities have repeatedly assured residents that the city's air and municipal water supply are safe.
Crews have inspected hundreds of homes and have found no dangerous levels of contaminants, according to the EPA.
Still, life in East Palestine has been upended as residents question the results, wondering if it's really safe to drink the water or breathe the air.
"It will be important to monitor the health of people and the environment around the train derailment for some time, as the health effects may not manifest until later," said Dr. Erin Haynes, a scientist at environmental health from the University of Kentucky.
"We should never say that we are done screening this community for potential exposures and health impacts."
Residents in the area of the spill in Ohio report skin rashes, sore throat and nausea
Temporary closure of water intakes in other cities due to contamination
Petroleum-derived chemicals float on the surface of the Leslie Run Creek water after being stirred up from the sediment Monday in East Palestine.
Credit: Michael Swensen/Getty Images
Some water courses were contaminated after the accident, causing the death of about 3,500 fish.
But officials have said they believe those contaminants have already been contained.
Norfolk Southern installed barriers and levees to restrict the flow of contaminated water from Sulfur Run and Leslie Run, two streams where dead fish were found, according to the EPA.
"The spill did flow into the Ohio River during the first discharge, but the Ohio River is very large and is a body of water capable of diluting contaminants fairly quickly," Tiffani Kavalec, an official with the Water Protection Agency, said last week. Ohio Environment.
Kavalec said the agency is fairly certain that the "low levels" of contaminants that remain are not passed on to water consumers.
The evacuation order for the toxic train that derailed in Ohio was lifted a week ago, but some are not comfortable going home
They also placed a series of pumps upstream to redirect Sulfur Run around the derailment site, Norfolk Southern said Monday.
"Environmental crews are treating the affected portions of Sulfur Run with booms, aeration and carbon filtration units," Norfolk Southern added.
"Those teams are also working with stream experts to collect soil and groundwater samples to develop a comprehensive plan to address any contamination that remains on stream banks and sediment."
The Ohio River intakes that were closed Sunday "as a precautionary measure" have been reopened after sampling "did not detect any of the chemicals specific to the train derailment," the Cincinnati and District Water Services said Monday. of Northern Kentucky Waters.
A third provider, the Maysville, Kentucky utility, announced that it had temporarily closed the Ohio River intakes Saturday, when toxic chemicals released into the river from the derailment were expected to reach the intake. Kentucky water treatment facility, company CEO Mark Julian said.
Water measurements have been below the level of concern, Julian said, and Maysville took precautionary measures by temporarily closing its Ohio River inlet valve due to public concern.
"The bottom line is that anyone along the Ohio River where the contaminants passed can breathe easy," he said.
A member of the Ohio EPA emergency response team searches for fish in Leslie Run Creek and checks East Palestine for chemicals Monday.
Credit: Michael Swensen/Getty Images
Meanwhile, most of the dangerous wagons remain at the crash site while investigators continue to investigate the wreckage.
However, Norfolk Southern announced Monday that nearly seven tons of contaminated soil and 1.1 million gallons of contaminated water have already been removed from the derailment site.
Contaminated soil became a point of contention last week after a public document sent to the EPA on February 10 did not include removal of the soil among completed cleanup activities.
It is not yet known what significance or impact the land that was not removed before the railway reopened on February 8 will have had on surrounding areas.
Some East Palestine businesses are struggling
As skepticism about air and water safety spreads, some local businesses say they have signed up fewer customers.
"Everyone is scared... They don't want to go in and drink water," Teresa Sprowls, a restaurant owner in East Palestine, told CNN affiliate WOIO.
A stylist at a hair salon told WOIO that there is no doubt that the salon has lost business and that customers may be concerned about what might be in the water they wash their hair with.
"I know a lot of our businesses are already suffering a lot because people don't want to come here," local greenhouse owner Dianna Elzer told CNN affiliate WPXI.
Her husband, Donald Elzer, shared her concerns, saying: "It's devastating. The more time that passes, the worse."
Dianna Elzer is also concerned about the long-term economic consequences for the community.
"Our property values, who is going to want to buy a house here now?" he told WPXI.
"It's going to be a long fight to get back to where we were."
What is East Palestine like?
Life in the Ohio town where a hazmat train derailed
The US Secretary of Transportation will visit Ohio ... but not for now
As residents call for both Norfolk Southern and government officials to be held accountable, US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said he plans to visit East Palestine "when the time is right" but did not announce a date on concrete.
This Monday he announced new efforts by the Department of Transportation to improve rail safety.
"We are accelerating and increasing our current lines of effort on rail regulation and inspection here at the US Department of Transportation, including increased regulation of highly hazardous flammable trains and electronically controlled air brakes, standards that were repossessed under the previous administration, to the fullest extent permitted by current law, and we will continue to use the resources of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act to fund projects that improve rail safety," Buttigieg said.
A Department of Transportation press release says the agency will continue to push for passage of the "Train Staffing Rule," which would require a minimum of two crew members on most rail operations.
Norfolk Southern has opposed the proposed rule.
Norfolk Southern has committed millions of dollars in financial aid to East Palestine, including $3.4 million in direct financial aid to families and a $1 million community assistance fund, among other aid, the company said.
Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw released an open letter saying to East Palestine residents: "I hear you" and "we are here and we will stay as long as it takes to ensure your safety and help East Palestine." to recover and prosper."
"Together with local health officials," Shaw said, "we have implemented a comprehensive testing program to ensure the safety of East Palestine's water, air and soil."
-- CNN's Celina Tebor, Linh Tran, Elizabeth Hartfield, Brenda Goodman, Jen Christensen, Maegan Vazquez, Sabrina Souza and Nicki Brown contributed to this report.
train derailment
