- Residents are mounting class action lawsuits against the train company whose train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio.
- The derailment led to a toxic chemical spill and fire, and the EPA is determining contamination levels.
Disgruntled and displaced Ohio residents are suing the train company that spilled 20-cars-worth of toxic chemicals into the town of East Palestine, Ohio, claiming the company's negligent behavior changed the course of their lives.
In at least four lawsuits across state and federal courts, residents are arguing that the company's poor handling of hazardous materials like vinyl chloride was negligent. According to the New York Times, Ohio and federal regulators are still assessing environmental and health damage.
On February 3, 2023, a Norfolk Southern Railroad Company freight train carrying toxic chemicals derailed, causing at least 150 cars to turn over with at least 50 cars catching fire. New videos sourced by the Pittsburgh Press-Gazette showed several of the train's cars on fire at least 20 miles before it derailed and spilled.
According to the Times, close to 2,000 residents from Ohio within a 2-mile radius were ordered to evacuate, and within days, officials carried out a "controlled release" and burning of the chemicals to avert a large explosion, which created a large plume of smoke over the area.
The company has donated $25,000 to the town and residents within a one-mile radius are eligible to get a $1,000 "convenience" check from the company. The company also released its proposed remediation plan.
The lawsuits against the company are piling up
Since February 8, several class action lawsuits have been filed against Norfolk Southern Railroad Company, which could be consolidated as the majority of the suits allege negligence by the company.
"Because the Vinyl Chloride that was released following the derailment and resulting fire is a known carcinogen that has been linked to an increased likelihood of contracting liver and other cancers," the train company should provide residents with "medical monitoring whereby they will be regularly followed, assessed and monitored by health care providers," attorneys for residents Ray and Judith Hall said in a class action lawsuit filed on February 8 in a federal court in the Northern District of Ohio.
A separate lawsuit, filed in the Columbiana County Common Pleas Court by the owners of Bird Dog Kennels and Stonybrook Kennels, cited the environmental impact on fish and wildlife in the area and claimed that the train company was negligent and delayed in notifying residents which chemicals had been spilled.
According to local news station WEWS, the Ohio Department of Natural resources said on Monday that at least 3,500 fish were killed by poisoning related to the derailment, with the contamination reaching streams up to 7.5 miles away.
Some residents reported having respiratory issues as well as their animals having trouble breathing after being cleared to return home, according to the New Republic.
Norfolk Southern Railway Company did not immediately return Insider's request for comment.
Some residents claim a 'controlled release' was chaotic
The Hall lawsuit claimed that the "design and performance" of the controlled burn of chemicals conducted on February 6, several days after the derailment, was a poorly-planned, alleging the decision caused a quick aerial spread of the materials.
"The toxic plume from the mushroom cloud reached a level in the atmosphere where it was unable to continue to rise vertically, so it began to spread out horizontally in a thick cloud," attorneys for the Hall family wrote in their lawsuit.
Since the derailment, federal and state agencies have raised the alarm about the existing and potential dangers of the spill in the soil, water, and air, according to WEWS.
On February 10, the EPA said that at least 20 cars were full of harmful chemicals such as vinyl chloride, which is used to make plastic pipes, packing materials, and parts for cars.
As of Monday, the EPA has inspected 291 homes, which the agency claimed showed no trace of vinyl or hydrogen chloride, and that close to 200 homes were still being checked.