WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board returns to East Palestine, Ohio, later this month to hear from community residents and then to announce the probable cause of the 2023 Norfolk Southern trail derailment and the release of toxic chemicals into the area.
The NTSB announced Thursday that it would hold a meeting with residents of East Palestine and surrounding areas affected by the derailment on Monday, June 24, and then meet with them again on Tuesday, June 25, when it also will hold a board meeting to approve the probable cause, the findings uncovered during the investigation into the derailment, and the safety recommendations designed to reduce the chances of a similar incident occurring in the future.
The board meeting is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. June 25 at the East Palestine High School, with the community meetings — which will focus on how NTSB conducts its investigations as well as the findings and recommendations from the derailment — from 6-8 p.m. at the high school on both June 24 and June 25.
The derailment occurred on Feb. 3, 2023, when dozens of cars of a Norfolk Southern train, many of them carrying toxic chemicals, went off the tracks in East Palestine. The subsequent controlled release and burn of toxic chemicals days later prompted the evacuation of the small Ohio village, sent a plume of black smoke into the skies over Beaver County, and left residents on both sides of the border fearful of the long-term health effects.
Norfolk Southern agreed to pay $600 million to settle lawsuits with residents, $15 million to the federal government, $57 million to reimburse the Environmental Protection Agency for costs of responding to the derailment, $25 million to pay for 20 years of medical exams, and $25 million to $30 million to monitor drinking water and groundwater.
Republican opposition has stalled bipartisan rail safety legislation introduced in the wake of the derailment, and the railroad industry is challenging a new rule requiring two-person crews on most freight trains.
Jonathan D. Salant: jsalant@post-gazette.com; @JDSalant
First Published: June 13, 2024, 8:50 p.m.
Updated: June 14, 2024, 2:18 p.m.
