In East Palestine, Ohio, residents have started to share their side of the story in the aftermath of the disastrous Norfolk Southern train derailment. More Perfect Union, a progressive non-profit news media organization, recently traveled to the community to interview residents who are getting sick and seeing their pets die.
More Perfect Union posted a video of their interviews to their Twitter page which said, “NEW: We went down to East Palestine for a week to get residents’ side of the story after the Ohio rail disaster. People told us they’re getting sick and their pets are dying, while Norfolk Southern is trying to cover it up.” Watch it below.
NEW: We went down to East Palestine for a week to get residents’ side of the story after the Ohio rail disaster.
People told us they’re getting sick and their pets are dying, while Norfolk Southern is trying to cover it up.@heyjohnrussell reports. pic.twitter.com/LY7koUIpeL
— More Perfect Union (@MorePerfectUS) March 9, 2023
The first man to be interviewed in the video shared his experience stating, “I got a neighbor and right now a puke and blood work director in Maine borough, people are going back to work because they have to they need that money. Not like the big boys or Norfolk or behind a desk or something new home kick back in their chair and go in there they got money coming in there they care about us. They don’t even care about their own employees.”
The interviewer in the video stated, “That’s what it’s like in East Palestine. I grew up in this county I live two counties south and route seven. The last time it was in East Palestine was for the sweetheart stance in 2007. I came back to find out what happened when a nearly two mile long Norfolk Southern train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed and was detonated in spectacular fashion on the edge of town.
We’ve been here for over a week. We see national figures and camera crews come and go. But what gets lost in so much of that coverage is that the people here still have a ton of unanswered questions. How safe is the air and water really? who if anyone has the juice to square up with a $55 billion company that treats disasters as the cost of doing business? And Will anyone step up to lead this time.”
One woman said, “I’m being exposed to something in my house. The doctor diagnosed me with contact dermatitis due to chemical exposure.” Another shared the scary side effects she is experiencing, “I kind of walked like three feet into my house I start feeling like I’m literally about the blackout. This is not this is not fucking happening for the ring gaslighted like every angle.” Residents have also shared how much of the wildlife in the area has died and many pets have gotten sick or died as well. “We’ve got the wildlife officers out there everyday checking our creeks. Everything’s dead nothing comes around. You should have birds we used to have all kinds of stuff,” one resident said.
Residents are convinced that Norfolk Southern is covering up the disaster and not being truthful about the impact of the toxic chemicals that have leaked into the surrounding areas. Residents feel they will never know the true impact this will have on their health and the environment around them. Furthermore, there is question of whether the EPA will provide the necessary assistance and if Norfolk Southern will be held accountable.
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