Some have suggested it could be the worst ecological disaster in the history of the United States. Late last week, a train carrying liquid vinyl chloride derailed in Ohio outside a town called East Palestine.
The derailment caused a 50-car pile-up, half the length of the train. The company says 20% of the cars were carrying hazardous material.
Some of the cars failed, spewing liquid over the surrounding area. Others kept the liquid contained inside, but the temperature change caused by the train’s break-down risked an explosion that would have sent shrapnel flying over the town.
So the governor ordered an evacuation of the town. Given the liquid’s volatility, authorities decided to execute what was called a “controlled incineration” of the material.
This led to the shocking photographs below, which show plumes of toxic gas spewing for hundreds of kilometres over the state.
The greater danger is that the contamination has reached the Ohio River, which affects a very large downstream area. Online videos claiming to be taken 2 miles from East Palestine showed fish belly-up in local creeks. Another showed a local resident holding his cat, which he said passed away from the PVC clouds.
Some have claimed seeing dead fish and cattle up to 100 miles away from the scene of the crash.
The controversy has been enhanced by the arrest of a journalist covering the story in East Palestine. However, the arrest was less a cover-up than procedural, after the journalist refused to stop reporting a live feed from a press conference being held by the governor.
The company operating the train, Norfolk Southern, belongs to a lobby group that successfully campaigned for changes to Obama-era safety regulations. The change would have required trains carrying hazardous materials to use the most modern braking technology.
Following lobbying of the Obama administration, however, the rules were changed so that they focused only on the transport of crude oil. Under Trump, the regulations were rolled back even further. Federal officials said the train was not listed as a “high-hazard” train.
The EPA reports that it has assessed hundreds of local homes and has not detected dangerous chemicals. At the same time, it says that locals may still smell the chemicals and should report any symptoms to healthcare.
Sadly it’s likely the real long-term effects will only be known as they are experienced by the people themselves.
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