The Ohio train derailment is not a comeback story, it's a grim warning. It's about an industry that values profit over people and the environment, and about a regulatory system that has failed to keep these industries in check. There is an undeniable connection between this disaster and the plastics industry. The production of PVC plastic depends on transporting harmful chemicals like vinyl chloride. The insatiable demand for plastics has driven the need for increased transport of these hazardous substances, placing communities near rail tracks under constant threat. As company profits soar, our communities are left to grapple with the aftermath of their negligence.
My community learned the hard way when a train derailed with devastating consequences. We witnessed the callousness that the rail industry is capable of when they laid tracks over our poisoned soil only a day after conducting what is likely an illegal open burn of the vinyl chloride voluntarily spilled from five railcars—a decision we are only now learning may not have been necessary.
President Biden, it's time to declare an emergency in Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia for those who have felt the impact of this train derailment.
My home is just outside the shockingly small evacuation zone. I watched from home as an ominous mushroom cloud expanded and crept over the place where I grew up. The sweet, thick chemical and chlorine smells left an unwanted film in my mouth as it intruded into my home and sent warning signals to my brain. We were advised to shelter in place, and that the smell didn't mean we would be harmed. The Unified Command reported on March 31 that residents were having acute health issues. Many residents still beg for improved indoor air testing, as the horrid odors linger inside and out for many, even five months later.
My town's freedoms have been hijacked and with it, the narrative. It's astonishing how good Norfolk Southern is at running a public relations campaign aimed at distracting from the core issues at hand such as efficient indoor air testing and early cancer screening opportunities. Declaring an emergency now, not only for Ohio, but for Pennsylvania and West Virginia residents in the tri-state area will set a precedent to ensure the freedoms of my fellow Americans won't be held hostage at the next derailment.
My young children who just experienced a pandemic are now asking again if their school is safe or if they will die if we continue to live in East Palestine—and yet, this could have been prevented. We have been left to beg for reimbursement for relocation, loss of income, related medical expenses, and clean air and water filtration systems from the company that caused this mess. The offender's financial assistance has come without clear criteria, length of time, or guidelines. We need to know our lifelong investments in our home and community will be protected.
I am grateful for the recent National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigative hearing. But the people of East Palestine have more urgent needs. You started the crime investigation before treating the victims that are still bleeding. And we are LITERALLY still bleeding. Our bodies have suffered from nosebleeds, headaches, respiratory illness, intestinal irritability, and eye irritation. Community members are now experiencing neurological symptoms and rectal bleeding—enough for blood transfusions. If you take action now, you can save lives. If you delay, then people will die. We know the cancer clusters are coming. We deserve the same protections as the people of Libby, Montana, who are now all eligible for Medicare following one of the worst asbestos exposure incidents in history.
We also need environmental testing and indoor home monitoring, and we need it all to be conducted by independent third-party groups rather than by the company that poisoned us. We cannot continue relying on Norfolk Southern to be honest about how bad the situation is and how much this disaster might cost my community.
After significant pressure, Gov. Mike DeWine (R-OH) has asked you, President Biden, to issue a major disaster declaration. Now is your opportunity to prioritize community needs over the malefactor's reports. There is time to hit reset.
In the meantime, my family will watch the trains roll through our town, many carrying potential hazards on behalf of the plastics industry. We can't help but hope that the same urgency applied to restoring their operations will be directed toward addressing our community's health and wellbeing. President Biden, I implore you to prioritize human lives over corporate profits and take decisive action to prevent another East Palestine.
Jessica Conard is an East Palestine resident, community advocate, and speech-language pathologist who lives two miles from the site of the Ohio train derailment.
