As the tragedy at East Palestine, Ohio continues to unfold, Senator J.D. Vance (R-OH) has demanded answers from the federal government as the residents of northeastern Ohio continue to suffer from potentially dangerous levels of hazardous chemicals contaminating the air and water supply.
In response to the catastrophe, Vance, who was elected in the 2022 midterm elections, will be traveling to East Palestine to get answers and hear from locals.
Vance’s visit to East Palestine comes a day after the Ohio senator sent a letter to the CEO of Norfolk Southern, the rail company responsible for the derailment.
The company has said that it will be responsible for all the costs associated with the derailment and has promised $1,000 compensation for East Palestine residents.
“The train derailment, venting, and chemical fire that began 10 days ago in East Palestine has generated national scrutiny, debate, and concern. More importantly, it has created dislocation, anxiety, displacement, and uncertainty in East Palestine, a rural farming community which nearly 5,000 Ohioans call home,” the author of Hillbilly Elegy wrote. “Ohioans across the state are watching these events with concern. My team and I have been in touch with local, federal, and state officials, national experts on epidemiology, and Norfolk Southern itself.”
“There is no guarantee that the health and safety of the town and its environs, as well as the larger region and watershed, will ever be the same,” he explained. “Many of my constituents have been displaced, including those within the one-mile evacuation and reimbursement zone, as well as those near the border of the zone.”
“These include families with young children who may be especially vulnerable to the carcinogenic and toxic gases released as a result of the derailment,” the senator added. “It will take major cleanup and the appropriate testing for baseline population-level biomarkers to fully ensure the area is safe, residents are unharmed, and that the release of vinyl chloride and other chemicals does not have a permanent impact.”
“I ask that you expand the criteria for the reimbursement area to include all residents of East Palestine, not merely those within the one-mile area of the evacuation perimeter. They are all affected,” Vance emphasized, adding in conclusion, “They should be reimbursed. I would strongly assert, however, that these checks should not and do not release the railroad from any liability it has incurred as a result of this disaster.”
Senator Vance’s letter to Norfolk Southern comes as he continues to blast Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg for his lackluster response to the crisis. In an interview with Fox Business on Wednesday, Vance said “I’ve got to say: the Secretary of Transportation not talking about this issue…talking about how we have too many white-male construction workers instead of the fact that our trains are crashing at alarming rates. The guy needs to do his job.”
As J.D. Vance continues to fight for his constituents, Americans are questioning where the federal government is and why state officials have yet to classify the incident in East Palestine as a disaster. Hopefully, Senator Vance’s visit to the small town will apply much-needed pressure.
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