By Armita Rohani
After last month’s trail derailment in East Palestine, another derailment occurred near Springfield, Ohio, both Norfolk Southern trains. 28 out of 212 train cars derailed, including four empty tanker cars. Fortunately, none of which derailed contained any hazardous materials, even though other cars did. Spokesman for Norfolk Southern, Connor Spielmaker stated that “Obviously, safety at Norfolk Southern is a priority. There were no hazardous material cars involved in the derailment and that’s what’s important.”
The derailment in East Palestine raised health concerns; wildlife were lying dead and the surroundings were barren of life. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources reported that more than 3,500 fish had died in nearby waterways. The Norfolk Southern train that derailed over a month ago had been carrying vinyl chloride, ethyl acrylate, and isobutylene, and the company has now been ordered by the EPA to conduct a cleanup of the area’s soil and water. A wheel on the train’s car 23 was overheating by 250 degrees more than the outside temperature of the time, causing the train cars to derail and massive speculations to arise on Norfolk’s safety regulations. The Department of Transportation is now being pressured to consider new safety regulations from the response of the lack of sensors the track had.
While officials and the Environmental Protection Agency have insisted that they haven’t found any chemicals that lead to a health concern, homeowners have reported symptoms of nausea, skin irritations, and headaches. Many were angered at the ignorance of the remark; one person yelled “Don’t lie to us!” and several others booed loudly towards the claim. President Biden told reporters that he would visit the derailment site “at some point,” following the urging of both republicans and democrats.
