By Christen Smith | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – State and local leaders said Tuesday that Norfolk Southern’s response to a train derailment near the Pennsylvania-Ohio border ignored best practices and prioritized speed over safety.
In a letter sent to the railroad’s chief executive offer, Gov. Josh Shapiro said he will hold Norfolk Southern accountable “for any and all impacts” that come as a result of hazardous chemicals leeching into the air and ground after 50 cars jumped the track on Feb. 3 across the state line in East Palestine, Ohio.
The accident forced residents in an area stretching 1-mile by 2-miles, including parts of western Beaver County, to evacuate while the railroad conducted a controlled release of five train cars carrying vinyl chloride. The chemicals, Shapiro said during a Feb. 6 news conference, could have exploded and released toxic fumes and deadly shrapnel across the region.
So far, no adverse health effects have been recorded since the incident, The Center Square previously reported. But Shapiro and other state lawmakers said, despite the complexity of the accident, Norfolk Southern rushed to reopen the rail line based on an “arbitrary timeline” that created more risk and confusion.
Norfolk Southern did not immediately respond to request for comment Wednesday morning before this story published. Ohio officials have said key decisions were made jointly with railroad, Ohio and federal authorities.
Rachel Bassler, spokeswoman for the Environmental Protection Agency, said Tuesday nearly 400 homes underwent voluntary screening after the controlled release ended on Feb. 8, with no vinyl chloride or hydrogen chloride detected. An additional 65 residences are pending review, she said.
In his letter, Shapiro said railroad personnel sequestered themselves from the rest of the incident management team to create tactical and operational strategies without the input of key state and local officials.
More confusion followed when the company offered conflicting models about the impact of the controlled release plan and kept officials in the dark about the number of cars in need of venting and burning. Alternative plans went unexplored, Shapiro said, that would have kept the rail line closed longer, but posed less danger to first responders, residents and the environment.
“Norfolk Southern’s well known opposition to modernized regulations require further scrutiny and investigation to limit the devastating effects of future accidents on peoples’ lives, property, business and environment,” he said.
Shapiro asked the Public Utility Commission to investigate the railroad’s conduct and urged the federal Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration to reexamine what constitutes a high-hazard flammable train, as well as the need for regulations to carry more advanced safety and braking equipment.
