'No one is coming to save us': residents of towns near toxic train derailment feel forgotten

[Brenda]

[https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/mar/05/forgotten-towns-ohio-toxic-train-derailment]


People living near the chemical disaster are wary of contamination, and even across the state line Pennsylvanians are worried

Nina Lakhani in Darlington, Pennsylvania, and Steubenville, Ohio
Sun 5 Mar 2023 08.09 EST

As a dense cloud of toxic smoke descended across Darlington in western Pennsylvania, Patrick Dittman knew that the catastrophic train derailment across the state line in East Palestine could also pose a danger to his family.

The 30-year-old bartender lives and works just a few miles from East Palestine, Ohio, where the Norfolk Southern’s 1.7-mile-long freight train carrying a hotchpotch of dangerous chemicals partly derailed and caught fire on 3 February.

Three days later a billowing smoke plume and the stench of burning plastic blew east into Pennsylvania after crews conducted a controlled burn of the vinyl chloride onboard the derailed train to nullify the risk of a potentially deadly explosion.

The toxic cloud engulfed Darlington Township, a small rural community with 1,800 residents, coating lawns, crops and cars in black soot.

“We wanted to get away even though we live outside the evacuation radius, but had nowhere to go. Over this way we’ve not been told anything about the implications – it’s very concerning,” said Dittman.

--snip--

This is criminal:

The 149-car train was classified as a general merchandise train, not a high-hazard flammable train, and therefore local officials did not immediately know what toxins the first responders and residents were exposed to when 50 cars derailed or caught fire.

[Goodheart]

1. Maybe they'll learn to appreciate regulatory protections instead of racists from here on out?

But I doubt it.

[Hope22]

2. Call your governor and ask the office to call the president to request help.

Dewine will never cooperate. He is actively feeding the disaster. My heart goes out to you.

[we can do it]

3. Well duh- you don't want government to help others, then something happens to you.....

[Hestia]

6. Exactly - first in line for the minions with mics, complaining about being 'forgotten'

just like all the MAGAt's

Read where the sheriff or whomever ASKED Pete Buttigieg and PJB NOT to come yet a day or so after, tying up of resources, etc., and then goes on Fox News and bitches about the lack of faces from Fed Gov't. That's where this whole 'forgotten' thing comes from.

Also read that is like the 4th derailment that has happened in the area.

[samplegirl]

4. Let's just hope Biden

comes and sends help! ASAP!

[Scrivener7]

8. He already has. FEMA and multiple agencies on the ground.

https://www.snopes.com/news/2023/02/17/ohio-train-derailment-fema/

[Cha]

42. Biden administration knocked on the doors of 530 East Palestine, Ohio, residents this weekend

President Joe Biden on Friday ordered federal agencies to go door to door to personally check on affected residents after the Feb. 3 train derailment that spilled toxic chemicals in the area.

The White House said in a statement shared first with NBC News that federal officials provided flyers with additional resources and conducted health surveys, ensuring the outreach will continue through the week.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/knocked-doors-530-east-palestine-ohio-train-derailment-rcna72591

I hope they're gong to PA, too!

[OnDoutside]

5. But muh freedumb.....

When lack of regulation bites you on the ass.

If I had buckets of money, I'd ram that point in that entire area

Lack of regulation caused this problem for you

The Republican Party believes in even less regulation.

[Orrex]

7. They will vote for the candidate who showed up at the derailment site

Not the candidate who journeyed to a distant foreign nation.

[Cha]

43. It's been reported on here that

dt's H2O Photo OP didn't go so well and neither did his throwing Maga hats at the McDonald's workers.

[Emile]

9. Trump came and gave them water.

[Autumn]

10. They can save themselves. Vote out any and all Republicans.

[Emile]

11. Amen

The majority of their county voted for deregulating Trump and he even had the balls to show up at his crime scene to hand out drinking water and MAGA hats.

[Autumn]

14. They got exactly what they voted for. I have no sympathy for them.

[Renew Deal]

12. The feds should buy all of the impacted land at pre-accident market rate and fine NS double that.

Turn the land into a national memorial to the victims of corporate greed.

[maxrandb]

13. Are there no bootstraps in Columbiana and Beaver Counties?

[Hortensis]

23. :) , right. Bootstraps start with reliable information.

First, go get some and consider it, then stop fussing or get doing as appropriate.

Likely most of these anxious people whose interviews make it clear they haven't done either have friends and relatives who've tried to help them get ahold of their bootstraps.

[maxrandb]

29. I have said that President Biden should visit East Pala-STEEN

as soon as all the "F×*k Joe Biden" and "Stop the Steal" signs come down. Having driven through there several times, it should only take a month or two to remove them all.

[Hortensis]

32. Lol. Another sort of argument for NOT encouraging locals

to call the president.

[onecaliberal]

17. What happened to your church, or personal responsibility? Small government?

This is what they voted for. Maybe they’ll get a clue.

[Squaredeal]

18. Don't count on it.

This is Ohio after all, hardly a progressive state in the Union.

[onecaliberal]

19. Then all I can say is they got what they voted for. Stop crying about it.

[onecaliberal]

33. 👆🏻👆🏻👆🏻👆🏻

[onecaliberal]

37. I couldn't agree more.

I’m done. Stop all federal aid. Let them figure it out. Our country could be so much more advanced. All the death and suffering is because of these people. Fuck every last one of them.

[Hortensis]

20. Almost all government responsibility, government resources, and government action

are state and local. Don't bother trying to contact POTUS. When federal help is needed, getting it is the governor's job. At least PA elected a Democrat to the office.

[Brenda]

21. The people interviewed live in PA.

How do you know how they voted?

[XanaDUer2]

22. Good question nt

[Hortensis]

24. Lol, can't say I do. Although, frankly, the more helplessly anxious

and needlessly uninformed that people are, my guess is the less likely they are to have voted at all and the less likely that those who did voted Democrat.

BUT, and this was my point: Responsible Pennsylvanians elected a Democratic governor, and that benefits all residents.

[maxrandb]

30. Look up the 2020 election results from Beaver County, PA

BTW-Beaver County is the place where Chuck Todd held about a half-dozen "focus groups" leading up to the election.

Funny, but he could never find his way to a blue area like Pittsburgh, despite it being only about 15 minutes from Beaver County.

Places like East Pala-STEEN, OH and Beaver County, PA went extreme MAGA right after the election of a black man as President.

Coincidental, I'm told.

[Cha]

44. TY for that info.

[Kid Berwyn]

25. NOW you get it.

Good luck! It’s all the wealthy can spare in America during the wealthiest times in human history.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

27. whew this thread

[Raine]

50. Agree 😔 nt

[leftstreet]

53. +1

[purr-rat beauty]

28. I get the resentment for the politics...

but these are people, fellow citizens.

The poison won't stop at their doorstep and borders and ideologies

help is decency, we should be decent.

[maxrandb]

31. Yes, why they came to the defense of the people of Flint, MI, didn't they?

Let me answer that for you...

They don't give one Fuck about their fellow citizens!

[Orrex]

40. Did anyone come to the defense of the people of Flint MI?

[maxrandb]

41. Yes! The Democratic Party and President Biden

That funded the replacement of lead pipes all over this country.

We've tried to help the people of East Pala-STEEN and similar red areas all over this fucking country, but they prefer to date the meth heads.

Well, I say "dance with the one who brung ya'"

[Orrex]

46. Incidentally, I live 20 miles from the site

I'm not the only Progressive in the area, so we're not really interested in your "they can go fuck themselves" attitude. Nor do we particularly want our neighbors to suffer, no matter how they voted. If they're engaged in an active threat to public health, then I won't weep when they suffer the consequences, but I also don't want them to be poisoned simply because Norfolk Southern was looking to pad the bottom line.


And the fact that I can even ask about Flint simply underscores how terrible Democrats are at framing a message or highlighting their accomplishments.

[Trenzalore]

47. Serious question

What is the breakdown of liberal/conservative in your area?

We aren't republicans, we don't just help people who agree with us. The administration should be offering every ounce of help they can and Norfolk should pay the government back for the damage they caused.

Norfolk didn't get to this point they are derailing trains every month overnight. There was a long and drawn-out period of deregulation over 50 years that eroded public safety. How many of your neighbors understand the very small part they played in supporting politicians that ranted about government over-regulation since Reagan that go us to this point?

[Orrex]

49. My county has been rather solidly red for a number of years

Western PA outside of Pittsburgh itself is likewise distressingly red.

Lots of low income, poorly educated people, many of whom firmly believe that unions are what collapsed the steel industry and killed the Rust Belt.

Hardcore Fox viewers, by and large. Most restaurants and bars with one or more TVs can be counted on to be airing Fox or Newsmax. And they certainly don't blame deregulation or the well-paid politicians that fought for it. The deregulation and perpetually diminishing corporate taxes are necessary because, otherwise, businesses would fail because of those pesky unions.

I'm not excusing the attitude. It frankly disgusts me, but there's literally nothing that I can do about it that will have any impact on those who hold such views. The best I can manage locally (along with other Progressives) is to be a voice loud enough to reassure our left-leaning neighbors that they aren't alone.


Someone typically jumps in at this point to tell me about all of the wonderful grassroots organizing that I should be doing. I invite them to set up shop here in town and get to it.

[Trenzalore]

52. Understandable

I think people forget when a disaster happens it could have happened anywhere.

This could have easily happened in a blue area that happens to have train tracks. Granted, if that happened the republicans would be slow at best to offer compassion to the residents unless it fits into a narrative that they could somehow put the blame on Biden.

I'm in a 50-50 area and belong to several local clubs (if you live in PA you know fire halls, VFW, and the American legion). The political views in those places are intriguing at times. Particularly the retired union guys spouting off Fox News talking points while collecting the pensions they got through collective bargaining.

I went door to door during 2008 Obama campaign. I won't do that anymore. Too many stories in 2012 and 2016 of people showing weapons in the area if they didn't like the political persuasion of the person knocking on doors.

[maxrandb]

51. Voting Retrumplican "is" engaging in an "active threat to public health"

[Orrex]

55. Well, I can see that you've given this matter serious, rational consideration.

[onecaliberal]

34. I won't be decent to people trying to kill me or calling for the death of trans people.

FUCK that.

[Wingus Dingus]

38. I'm not sure what these people want.

All anyone can do is testing and cleanup, and try to wrangle money out of the responsible party if you have a health or property damage case. Just like any other environmental disaster. What sort of fucking daily hand-holding do these people need? Edit to add: Trump Country is the biggest pile of snowflakes ever.

[Trenzalore]

48. I live in a bigger community about 250,000 people

I can hear the train from my parking lot when I leave work.

I also lived in Philadelphia. There is commercial rail that goes through that city.

It is unfortunate this community is being affected by this disaster but it just as easily could have happened to a major metropolitan area and that would have been a bigger disaster.

[ananda]

39. I am a horrible person for saying this, but so what?

If you vote republican, you get horrors.

[ZonkerHarris]

45. Gosh your Republican governor doesn't have this under control with your best interest at heart?

Oh well.
Elections matter.

[maxsolomon]

54. Dittman is right to be concerned.

I don't know that anyone, even the dagburn Fedrul Gubmint, knows what the implications of the spill and burn are. Not fully. They're not good, and if you breathed it in, that's bad.