A year on, a small Ohio town is recovering from a fiery train derailment but health fears persist
Daily life largely returned to normal for most of the nearly 5,000 residents of East Palestine, Ohio, months after a Norfolk Southern train derailed and spilled a cocktail of hazardous chemicals that caught fire a year ago, but the worries and fears are always there.
Some people still report respiratory problems, rashes or headaches, or say they feel ill whenever they return to the village not far from the Pennsylvania border. At least several dozen haven’t returned to their homes, concerned about chemicals like the vinyl chloride that was released and burned when officials blew open five derailed tank cars because they worried the cars might explode.
But others believe the EPA’s findings that their air and water are safe. They say they’re ready to move on and take advantage of all the money the railroad and governments are investing in the area. They don’t want the derailment to define their town.
“We’re going to move forward with our lives,” said Village Council member Linda May.
