Ohio Train Derailment Latest Shameful Failure for Biden, Buttigieg

Just after 9 pm on February 3, a Norfolk-Southern Railroad train carrying toxic chemicals crashed while passing through the village of East Palestine, releasing a flood of vinyl chloride, butyl acrylate, ethylhexyl acrylate, ethylene glycol monobutyl ethers, and other highly dangerous chemicals. The working-class town has a population of about 5,000 and is situated roughly 20 miles south of Youngstown on the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. Residents were quickly ordered to evacuate as authorities scrambled to respond.

Nearly two weeks later, many questions remain unanswered, including whether it is truly safe for people to return to their homes. While the EPA and local authorities have said that water and air quality are no longer a concern, photos and videos have surfaced showing thousands of dead fish, frogs, and birds in the area around the crash. Many residents have continued to report a sore throat, burning eyes and nostrils, and an overwhelming smell of chemicals in the air, even as officials say there is no immediate health threat.

It is even unclear whether the water is safe to drink. The Marietta Times, citing village officials, said on Tuesday that the tap water in East Palestine is safe to consume. But just hours later, CNN issued a tweet stating that officials say residents of East Palestine, Ohio should drink bottled water.

via amac.us

This is a terrible thing. People will be dealing with this disaster for the rest of my lifetime, the next twenty years or more for sure. There are lots of people and institutions at fault, but at the center of it will prove to be Norfolk Southern and their captured regulators, I’m betting.