The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that several investigators in East Palestine, Ohio fell ill while studying the potential health effects of the train crash in February.
The residents of the city and its surroundings have complained of symptoms such as lethargy and headaches since February 3rd when a Norfolk Southern train derailed, releasing vinyl chloride, ethyl acrylate, and isobutylene into the environment – chemicals that are considered highly toxic and even carcinogenic with prolonged exposure.
Seven investigators from the CDC and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, units of the US Department of Health and Human Services, ‘have begun experiencing symptoms including sore throat, headache, cough, and nausea’. According to the federal health agency, these symptoms are similar to those experienced by local residents and other first responders after a train carrying chemicals derailed.
It is unclear whether the symptoms experienced by investigators were caused specifically by the toxic chemicals that were released into the environment, but this occurred after government officials and representatives from Norfolk Southern repeatedly assured the safety of the air and drinking water in the area of the disaster.
Earlier this month, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) stated that it will require Norfolk Southern to conduct direct testing for dioxins, a group of toxic chemical compounds. Dioxins can be released into the air when vinyl chloride is burned. According to the EPA, dioxins are known as persistent organic pollutants, which means that it takes a long time for them to break down after they are released into the environment.
If tests show that dioxins are found at levels that pose a risk to human health or the environment, the EPA will require the company to clean up the area. The news of investigators getting sick came on the same day that the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Norfolk Southern, seeking an injunction and monetary fines related to the rail derailment, including a fine of nearly $65,000 for each day of violation of clean water laws.