(NewsNation) — A controlled burn and explosion set off in the wake of a massive train derailment that exposed the town of East Palestine, Ohio, to toxic chemicals could have been avoided with a safer option, National Transportation Safety Board chair Jennifer Homendy testified to the Senate Wednesday.
Several pieces of necessary information were not shared with state and local leaders who decided to vent and burn five tank cars after being advised by Norfolk Southern contractors at the scene of the crash in February 2023 that it was their only option.
“They were provided incomplete information to make a decision,” Homendy said.
Homendy testified the railway contractors “lacked the scientific background” to support the recommendation that a controlled burn was the only way to avoid the train cars from spontaneously exploding.
She testified that experts from chemical shipping company OxyVinyls, who were also on the scene during the derailment, told Norfolk Southern’s contractors to hold off on the controlled burn, but their assessment was not shared with key officials.
Homendy also confirmed that ground crews were told to decide in 13 minutes on the controlled explosion, and no other opinions were offered.
An investigation by the NTSB found that Gov. Mike DeWine, East Palestine Fire Chief Keith Drabick and several other officials were told they had minutes to decide whether to vent the train cars or wait and risk an uncontrolled explosion.
“There was another option: Let it cool down,” she said.
Homendy explained that chemicals in the cars were cooling down and stabilized hours before the burn and explosion when questioned by Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, who called her testimony an “extraordinary finding.”
“This town very well may have been poisoned to facilitate the rapid movement of freight, or at the very least, it was poisoned for reasons that we can’t identify,” Vance said. “That should really concern every single person on this committee.”
The controlled burn contaminated the air, water and soil in East Palestine, and even one year after the derailment, many of the town’s residents say they will still suffer from health issues.