A horrific environmental disaster is happening in Ohio, and you may not even have heard about it

[douglas9]

A train derailment last week in Ohio has turned into a full-fledged environmental disaster, and it’s received surprisingly little national media coverage.

Last Friday, a train belonging to Norfolk Southern, one of America’s leading rail operators, derailed near the Pennsylvania border, leaving what the Associated Press called “a mangled and charred mass of boxcars and flames” just outside the village of East Palestine, home to about 5,000 people. The crash created a 50-car pileup—half the train’s length. According to Norfolk Southern, a fifth of the cars were carrying hazardous materials.

The wreckage proceeded to burn ominously all weekend. By Sunday evening, residents near the train tracks were told to “immediately evacuate” in a sudden alert from the office of Governor Mike DeWine. He went on to warn: “There is now the potential of catastrophic tanker failure which could cause an explosion with the potential of deadly shrapnel traveling up to a mile.”

Apparently a particular cause for concern were 14 giant tankers that were “exposed to fire” while full of hundreds of thousands of gallons of vinyl chloride. A chemical used in PVC, vinyl chloride is flammable, toxic, and a declared brain, lung, blood, and liver carcinogen. The federal government banned it from household spray cans in 1974. Breathing it “can make you dizzy or sleepy, or have a headache,” a fact sheet released two days ago by the Ohio Department of Health alerts readers. “You can die from breathing extremely high levels of vinyl chloride.

https://www.fastcompany.com/90848025/ohio-train-derailment-toxic-chemicals-pvc-spill-fire-disaster


https://thedeepdive.ca/train-derailment-in-ohio-results-in-an-air-quality-disaster/

[appalachiablue]

1. K/R Staggering, what a disaster, thanks for posting.

[calimary]

2. Sounds pretty awful.

I wish there weren’t so many toxic chemicals in circulation.

[JT45242]

3. Taught in suburban Cincinnati for many years. This was our biggest

Fear.

The sheer amount of toxic precursor chemicals that run through the area on unprotected train lines was a big risk since 9/11/2001.

Concentrated ammonia ia, sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, glacial acetic anhydride, all those nasty organics like benzene. Vinyl chloride...

We had shelter in place plans for this that might last literally days if a major train wreck or terrorist train attack occurred on the train lines near the school.

One of the least protected risky infrastructure sections has always been chemical transport on train.

Surprised this kinds of stories don't happen more often the way people try to beat the train across crossing areas.

[jaxexpat]

7. The stories are largely unreported because there is no apparent consequence.......

to derailed train cars. This one may return to the headlines if it blows up high and loud enough. The introduction of random poisons into the environment is not so common as they once were before government environmental and safety legislations in the 70's. There are few unaffiliated news organizations these days, thus few independent investigators to expose the seriousness and criticality of almost anything.

[2naSalit]

4. It has been on my mind...

Since the wreck occurred.

[John1956PA]

5. It is good to publish updates about this. I posted on DU within the first hour it happened.

It has gotten publicity in the news outlets, but the more the better. Being from the general area, I have stopped at crossings (for about ten years now) where I waited and watched the passing of trains with long strings of tanker cars. The trains come from Ohio and pass through East Palestine on their southeastern journey to Conway Yards which lies about twenty miles north of Pittsburgh. I do not know what were in the many tanker cars which I saw pass by over the years. The Pennsylvania community of Chippewa Township lies about seven miles southeast of East Palestine, OH. I shop in Chippewa Township frequently. Statements about the dangers of chemical vapors have been issued by Ohio and Pennsylvania authorities. The statements define the area of danger to chemical exposure as that of a circle with a one-mile radius from the site of the derailment.

[Locrian]

6. yeah big business ...

https://www.levernews.com/rail-companies-blocked-safety-rules-before-ohio-derailment/

Before this weekend’s fiery Norfolk Southern train derailment prompted emergency evacuations in Ohio, the company helped kill a federal safety rule aimed at upgrading the rail industry’s Civil War-era braking systems, according to documents reviewed by The Lever.

[Duppers]

18. TY for posting this!

[Bear Creek]

8. Contractors

While the news story has been in almost every major news outlet. I have to wonder about Norfork and Southern outsourcing to contractors. They have been cutting back on the union workers they have to do the job right.

[CaptainTruth]

9. I remember how, years ago, after another oil/chemical train disaster, Dems pushed for safety...

...regulations, & Rethugs opposed.

In response to the recent Ohio disaster I posted this:

No links, but Google is your friend.

2014: Oil train safety: Political wreck ahead?
2014: Dems and GOP have competing visions for making oil trains safer in Washington state
2014: Oil train wrecks spur railroad safety measures
2015: Senate Democrats push White House on oil train safety
2015: Senate Republicans Pushing 3-Year Delay For Rail Safety System
2016: Democrats Mount New Crude Train Safety Push After Derailment

And there are many more...

[democrank]

10. Horrible accident and aftermath

Thank you for posting this.

[tenderfoot]

11. But spy balloons!

&t=6s

[appleannie1]

12. It was on our news for days and days.

Last I heard, chemicals had gotten into a creek and from there the Ohio River and were detected by the Weirton W. Va water authority. They immediately closed down their intake valves and began using water from a standby pool. I will see if I can find anything else on it.

[appleannie1]

13. As of yesterday they were monitoring in Cincinnati.

https://www.wlwt.com/article/cincinnati-water-works-water-quality-train-derailment/42837092

According to Cincinnati city manager Sheryl Long, Greater Cincinnati Water Works is monitoring the water quality in the Cincinnati area after the train derailment and release of toxic chemicals in East Palestine.

Crews released toxic chemicals into the air from five derailed tanker cars that were in danger of exploding Monday and began burning them after warning residents near the Ohio-Pennsylvania state line to leave immediately or face the possibility of death.

Authorities in East Palestine had warned that burning vinyl chloride that was in five of the derailed tanker cars would send hydrogen chloride and the toxic gas phosgene into the air. They said Wednesday subsequent air monitoring hasn’t detected dangerous levels inside or outside the mile-radius evacuation zone.

Long is assuring citizens that Water Works is keeping a close eye on the water quality and will act quickly if needed.

[Ruby the Liberal]

16. Thank you - that was exactly what I was wondering

Just now hearing about this tragedy. Reading through the comments I just kept thinking, how on earth do they even attempt to contain something like this. Glad they have a mechanism to even try.

[DallasNE]

14. I Read A Report About

Dead cattle and fish in Ohio over a 100-mile area. I presume that is related to this train wreck.

I haven't read anything about the cause of the derailment yet. Has anybody else heard what caused it? I hope it was not excessive speed, making it preventable.

[Duppers]

17. VERY Concerning. Thanks for the heads-up.

Link to tweet

[Duppers]

19. This stood out:."Journalists covering the story have been arrested."

WTF?!

[DallasNE]

21. Agree. And That Tweet Was My Original Source

And which agencies were doing the arresting? DeWine's State Troopers? Sheriff's Deputies? We need answers.

[appleannie1]

28. It was one reporter and he was talking while the governor was giving an update and a couple gung ho

cops decided to play tough guy. He was release and the governor was upset when he was told about the arrest. He did not order it.

[Duppers]

30. Good to know.

Thanks!

[appleannie1]

25. The crew got an alert about a faulty axel just before the cars jumped the tracks.

They were almost at their destination in Conway, Beaver County, PA. East Palestine, Ohio is almost on the Oh - PA line about 20 miles from Conway.

[DallasNE]

32. Were The Hot Box Detectors Not Working? n/t

[Marthe48]

15. 50 cars, half the train 's length?

Does that mean there were 100 cars? Does it mean 20 cars (1/5 of 100) were carrying toxic material, or do they mean 1/5 of 50? (10 cars?)

The wind usually blows west to east in my part of Ohio, but I am down river from Weirton WV, on the Ohio side.

How many people have to be in harm's way to get attention? Seems like along the railways, 5,000 people in harm's way isn't enough to raise eyebrows or make headlines.

[appleannie1]

27. A little more than 20 cars and it was a minor spill and it is being monitored.

Water authorities are closing their intake valves until it is okay to reopen them.

[NNadir]

20. I worked in my career with all of the combustion products of vinyl chloride.

They are HCl gas, carbon dioxide and phosgene.

Phosgene is generated by combustion of vinyl chloride at very low levels.

I handled liquid phosgene on a kilogram scale in a relatively small laboratory.

Combustion Products from Vinyl Chloride Monomer

The abstract says all one needs to know:

By means of a variety of analytical techniques, the combustion profile of vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) has been determined. This profile includes flame temperatures, soot content, and a combustion gas analysis. Depending on the amount of VCM-air premixing prior to combustion, the temperature of a VCM flame ranges from 950° to 1466°C. Similarly, the soot or unburned carbon content of a VCM flame varies from 3 to 6 weight percent. An analysis of the combustion gases from VCM reveal the following composition: HC1 27,000?ppm; CO2 58,100?ppm; CO 9500?ppm; phosgene 40?ppm; and VCM trace. From a hazard standpoint, the gross quantity of hydrogen chloride is the main source of danger in a VCM fire.

The half life of free, unburned vinyl chloride in the atmosphere, according to the EPA, is about 1.5 days.

Technical Factsheet on: VINYL CHLORIDE

I hope I'm not disappointing anyone by suggesting that this accident, while serious, is not going to wipe out Youngstown, Ohio, Pittsburg, PA or even the town of East Palestine, Ohio.

It is not going to kill as many people, if any, as the operations of nearby W H Sammis Coal Fired Powerplant has surely killed in its normal operations about 30 miles from East Palestine.

[JudyM]

23. What do you make of the dead fish and cattle 100 miles away, reported above?

[NNadir]

24. The same thing that I make of claims that the giant catfish in Chernobyl's...

Last edited Mon Feb 13, 2023, 02:59 PM - Edit history (1)

...abandoned cooling ponds are radioactive mutants.

The fish in question are a species, Wel's catfish, that has been noted for its size in Europe for many centuries, long before the existence of radioactivity was known.

It has never been the case that cattle are immortal. The opposite case is well known, even without the agency of, say, McDonald's.

Cattle die all the time all over the world, and no one interprets these deaths as being evidence of a vinyl chloride leak.

The arbitrary assignment of common events to an unusual event can, and often should, be regarded with suspicion, since such thinking can and does generate hysteria.

The toxicological properties including LC50s at given concentrations of vinyl chloride have been studied and are known. It seems absurd to attribute the death of a cow a hundred miles away as being attributable to this event. It makes no rational scientific sense at all.

I live less than 150 meters from a very active freight rail line. As a scientist, I do from time to time muse about the risks associated with the transport of hazardous materials but also concede that all hazards are worthy of a risk/reward calculation. I do not favor shutting the freight line near my home, even though the passage of trains probably impacts my health, if not from the toxic nature of diesel exhaust, then possibly by exacerbating my chronic insomnia.

[appleannie1]

29. Thank you

I live near the Allegheny River and huge catfish have been swimming there as long as I have been alive. And almost all of the smoke drifted across Beaver County in Pennsylvania and not Ohio.

[appleannie1]

26. My brother lives in Beaver County, very close to where this occurred.

For two days, while the cars were still burning, they were asked to stay indoors unless they had to go outside. It was with an abundance of caution until they knew exactly what all was on that train. There were only 5 cars with the vinyl chloride and at first their safety release was working as it should. The word went out that pressure was building in one of the cars so it was decided to do a controlled release and burn off. ?c=16x9&q=h_720,w_1280,c_fill Out of an abundance of caution, they evacuated a one mile radius of the crash site and they did hourly air testing and once the twenty odd cars that derailed were cleared off the tracks, they started doing soil samples. The total time they were not allowed to return to their homes was 5 days. Once they got the all clear, from state and federal authorities, people were allowed to return home. Only a very small amount of chemicals made their way into a nearby creek with flows into the Ohio River and they have been tracking that since day one. The whole thing could have been a lot worse if they had actually been in the middle of town when it derailed and caught fire. As it was, they were on the outskirts of town. No injuries were reported. The railway company is covering the cost of hotels and meals for people that were displaced and paying for water wells in the area to be tested.
There is absolutely no reason to panic. If anything, authorities are being more cautious than they need to be. So be thankful that the main priority from day one has been safety.

[Duppers]

31. That's good news.

Thank you again for all the updates.