(NewsNation) — President Joe Biden will visit the site of a train derailment that spilled hazardous chemicals in East Palestine, Ohio, in February, according to a senior administration official.
During the visit on a yet-to-be-announced date, Biden will meet with residents impacted by the Feb. 3, 2023, crash and subsequent chemical burn. The official says it’s in an effort to demonstrate continued commitment to holding Norfolk Southern Railway responsible for the crash and its effects.
“As President Biden has said from the beginning, the administration will continue to support the people of East Palestine and other affected communities for as long as it takes, including by using every available tool to hold Norfolk Southern accountable,” a White House official said in a statement Wednesday.
Some 1,500 residents were told to evacuate following the crash. Fearing an explosion, officials decided to vent and burn five tank cars, releasing 116,000 gallons of the carcinogen vinyl chloride into the air. Later, a toxic plume of smoke smothered the region.
However, three days later, the Environmental Protection Agency said it had not detected contaminants at “levels of concern” and gave the all-clear for residents to return.
Residents of East Palestine complained of rashes and sickness. They’ve also criticized the government for downplaying their concerns that their community is no longer safe to live in.
Politicians, including former President Donald Trump, have visited the community as they navigate the aftermath of the incident. Biden was not one of them, even though he previously said he would do so “at some point.”
Since the derailment, cleanup crews have removed more than 176,000 tons of contaminated soil and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has collected more than 45,000 air, water and soil samples around the community. None of those results have shown contaminants at concerning levels since the evacuation order was lifted, according to the Biden administration.
But the discovery of chemicals in the creeks of East Palestine, including Leslie Run, have undercut the administration’s PR and messaging. NewsNation investigative correspondent Rich McHugh and resident Rick Tsai, now running for Congress, went to Leslie Run, where a rainbow-colored sheen appeared when the ground was stirred up.
In March, an independent testing expert confirmed residents’ fears that carcinogens were in the water that the Ohio EP was not finding. More tests revealed dioxins — the most toxic compounds on the planet — in the soil, water and people’s air filters.
By May, frustration had grown. Locals grew angry with the EPA, which they say is ignoring the facts and, most importantly, ignoring them.
NewsNation pressed the EPA. Mark Durno, an EPA response coordinator, said in an interview with McHugh that “he didn’t know” why people are getting sick, though he did say there’s a “potential” they were exposed to vinyl chloride.
In July, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine requested that Biden issue a disaster declaration, but the president has yet to do so.
In Sept. 2023, Biden issued an executive order that directed the Federal Emergency Management Agency to appoint a Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator to oversee long-term recovery efforts.
Today, nearly a year later, those in East Palestine say their problems are getting worse, not better. At a town hall NewsNation anchor Chris Cuomo hosted, he asked a room of residents, “Who believes that you have been forgotten?”
Every hand went up.
