East Palestine was like most small communities in the United States—the kind of place where families have lived for generations, everyone seems to know each other, and high school football Friday nights are like holidays.
That comfort and nostalgia abruptly changed on Feb. 3, when a Norfolk Southern Railway freight train carrying 151 cars derailed in this village of 4,761 in eastern Ohio near the Pennsylvania border.
The train was en route to Conway, Pennsylvania, from Madison, Illinois, and it traveled through heavily populated areas such as Cleveland before derailing in East Palestine.
For weeks now, East Palestine and surrounding communities have been coping with the aftermath, including the release of thousands of gallons of toxic chemicals, as local, state, and federal officials try to determine both short- and long-term courses of action.
Here is a timeline of the train derailment and its aftermath:
Feb. 3
- A Norfolk Southern train carrying 151 cars derails in East Palestine at about 9 p.m.
- Fifty cars derail, and 11 cars containing hazardous chemicals catch fire.
Feb. 4
- East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway declares a state of emergency, citing a “train derailment with hazardous materials.”
- Residents of East Palestine and surrounding communities are told to evacuate the area.
- The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says that contaminated runoff from the derailment has been discovered in two local creeks: Sulphur Run and Leslie Run.
- Norfolk Southern contractors install booms and underflow dams to restrict the flow of contaminated water.
Feb. 5
- Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine is notified that one car carrying vinyl chloride is at risk of exploding. Officials are faced with “two bad options”: allowing the car to explode—which could launch deadly shrapnel nearly a mile—or vent and burn the chemical.
- Vinyl chloride is a chemical used to make PVC pipes and other products. The National Cancer Institute notes that vinyl chloride has been linked to cancers of the brain, lungs, blood, lymphatic system, and liver.
- DeWine issues an “urgent evacuation notice” to anyone who hasn’t yet evacuated within a mile of the train derailment, saying, “This is a matter of life and death.”
Feb. 6
- Norfolk Southern and state and local officials decide to release and burn vinyl chloride from five rail cars.
- Norfolk Southern conducts the burn of vinyl chloride at about 4:15 p.m., sending flames and thick black smoke billowing.
Feb. 7
- DeWine says it’s not clear when residents will be allowed to return to their homes.
Feb. 8
- DeWine holds a press conference at East Palestine High School with Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, East Palestine Fire Chief Keith Drabick, and other officials from Ohio and Pennsylvania.
- DeWine announces that the evacuation order has been lifted and that residents can return to their homes.
- Norfolk Southern trains resume their routes through East Palestine.
Feb. 10
- The EPA sends a general notice of potential liability to Norfolk Southern, detailing areas in which the company may be liable for damages and cleanup related to the derailment. The letter names other hazardous chemicals found at the derailment site following the release and burn of vinyl chloride, including ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, ethylhexyl acrylate, isobutylene, and butyl acrylate.
Feb. 13
- Norfolk Southern submits its remedial action plan to the EPA, explaining its response to the derailment thus far and recommending additional actions. The plan explains that pooled liquids are being collected into a vacuum truck and prepared for disposal. Surface water flow is rerouted from the derailment site, and underflow dams are in place.
- Air quality monitoring is underway. Well water is being sampled. Soil and surface water sampling is planned. Shallow soil will be removed “to reduce direct contact risk,” the plan says, and soil sampling is scheduled to happen in ”the next several days.”
- The railroad says it’s preparing to install groundwater monitoring wells to “evaluate the nature and extent of groundwater impacts associated with the derailment.”
Feb. 14
- DeWine holds a press briefing and reports that Norfolk Southern has agreed to pay for the cost of cleanup and damages in East Palestine and that workers from the railroad will remain in the village until the situation is resolved.
- Shapiro publishes an open letter to Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw announcing that Norfolk Southern’s conduct is under investigation by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission.
- The National Transportation Safety Board reports that investigators identified the exact car that initiated the crash. A video shows “what appears to be a wheel bearing in the final stage of overheat failure moments before the derailment,” the board said.
Feb. 15
- DeWine issues a statement saying that East Palestine residents can safely drink the municipal water, according to the Ohio EPA. Results returned to the Ohio EPA show no contaminants in raw water from the five wells that feed into East Palestine’s municipal water system, DeWine’s office says.
- People who get their drinking water from private wells should first get their water tested, as their wells may be closer to the surface than municipal water wells, the Ohio EPA says.
Feb. 16
- Residents of East Palestine and surrounding communities pack into the high school gymnasium for a town hall meeting with Mayor Conaway, Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff, U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson (R-Ohio), and representatives from the EPA, Ohio EPA, and the Ohio Division of Natural Resources.
- Norfolk Southern had originally planned to send officials to the town hall, but the company issues a statement hours beforehand: “We know that many are rightfully angry and frustrated right now. Unfortunately, after consulting with community leaders, we have become increasingly concerned about the growing physical threat to our employees and members of the community around this event stemming from the increasing likelihood of the participation of outside parties. With that in mind, Norfolk Southern will not be in attendance this evening.”
- A Norfolk Southern train derails in Michigan. None of the damaged cars contain hazardous materials, and no injuries are reported.
- Norfolk Southern CEO Shaw sends an open letter to East Palestine residents pledging that the railroad would not abandon the community. “We have implemented a comprehensive testing program to ensure the safety of East Palestine’s water, air, and soil. And we have established a $1 million community support fund as a down payment on our commitment to help rebuild,” he writes.
- Norfolk Southern launches a website, NSMakingItRight.com, as an information source for residents.
- DeWine requests federal assistance for residents dealing with the aftermath.
- The Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA) says it won’t declare an emergency in East Palestine—at least for now—according to DeWine.
- FEMA declines to help because East Palestine isn’t eligible for disaster assistance, DeWine spokesperson Dan Tierney says. FEMA says the derailment and subsequent chemical spill and release, as well as the burn that sent toxic chemicals into the air, don’t qualify as a traditional disaster, such as a tornado or hurricane, he adds.
Feb. 17
- Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) announces an investigation into railroad companies’ management of hazardous materials by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- DeWine says he will ensure Norfolk Southern covers all costs resulting from the derailment, including any future expenses if it’s determined that the toxic chemicals spilled and released cause cancer and other ailments.
- Former President Donald Trump announces he will visit East Palestine on Feb. 22.
- FEMA announces it will send a team to East Palestine. DeWine and FEMA Regional Administrator Thomas Sivak issue a joint statement saying that the federal agency has been in “constant contact” with the state and that it and the state have been “working together since day one.”
Feb. 18
- Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) send a letter to state and federal EPA officials urging them to test for dioxins—pollutants created when chemicals such as vinyl chloride burn.
- Norfolk Southern’s Shaw visits East Palestine and says the company “will be working tirelessly every day to get East Palestine back on its feet as soon as possible.”
Feb. 20
- Norfolk Southern announces that about 15,000 pounds of contaminated soil and 1.1 million gallons of contaminated water have been removed from the derailment site. The excavated contaminated soil and water will be transported to landfills and disposal facilities that are “designed to accept it safely, in accordance with state and federal regulations,” the railroad explains.
- Norfolk Southern also notes that it already has committed more than $5.6 million to East Palestine to date, including $3.4 million in direct financial assistance to families.
Feb. 21
- Norfolk Southern’s CEO says that if his family had a house in East Palestine, he would return home. “I’ve come back multiple times and I’ve drank the water here. I’ve interacted with the families here,” Alan Shaw says. “I think when they really dig into it, they’re going to see that all the testing, whether it’s done by the EPA or local health officials or our independent contractors, shows that it’s safe to return to this community.”
- The Ohio Department of Health opens a clinic in East Palestine to treat patients with symptoms after the derailment. Representatives from the Department of Health and Human Services and the health department of Columbiana County will assist the Ohio Department of Health.
- The EPA announces that Norfolk Southern must manage and fund all necessary cleanup related to the derailment. The legally binding order requires that rail companies identify and clean up any contaminated soil and water resources and reimburse the EPA for cleaning services offered to residents and businesses.
Feb. 22
- Trump visits East Palestine, bringing bottled water and cleaning supplies. The former president, who’s seeking another term, calls the crash a “tragedy,” tells residents that they are “not forgotten,” applauds the community as the “tough and resilient heart of America,” and praises Conaway, Johnson, Vance, and other officials for their response.
Feb. 23
- Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg visits East Palestine for the first time and acknowledges that he could have addressed the disaster sooner. “I felt strongly about this and could have expressed that sooner,” he says. “I was taking pains to respect the role that I have and the role that I don’t have, but that should not have stopped me from weighing in about how I felt about what was happening to this community.”
- The National Transportation Safety Board issues its preliminary report, confirming that an overheated wheel bearing may have been the cause of the derailment. The train’s crew didn’t receive a warning about the overheated axle until moments before the cars jumped the tracks, at which point an engineer slowed, then stopped, the train.
Feb. 24
- Environmental activist Erin Brockovich holds a town hall at East Palestine High School with more than 2,000 in attendance. “Superman is not coming. Nobody is coming to change what has happened to you, magically fix everything, or give you all of the answers,” Brockovich says. “You will become the strongest advocate you have.”
- President Joe Biden directs teams from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, EPA, and FEMA to visit East Palestine homes starting on Feb. 25. The “walk teams” will visit residents to see what they need and connect them with federal and nonprofit resources.
- Biden responds to a question asking whether he is planning to visit East Palestine. “At this time, I’m not,” he says.
- The EPA orders a temporary pause on shipments of contaminated waste from the derailment site amid objections from Michigan authorities who say they weren’t aware that hazardous materials were headed to their state.
Feb. 26
- The EPA says shipments of contaminated waste can resume. A portion of the liquid waste will be transported to a facility in Vickery, Ohio. Norfolk Southern will also send some of the solid waste to an incinerator in nearby East Liverpool, Ohio.
Feb. 27
- Ohio Sens. Vance and Brown write a joint letter to the EPA and CDC, urging them to immediately start health screenings for East Palestine residents.
Feb. 28
- EPA Administrator Michael Regan attends a roundtable in East Palestine, recognizing “there has been a deficit of trust” in the federal government during the disaster aftermath.
Mar. 1
- Sens. Vance, Brown, Bob Casey (D-Pa.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) introduce The Railway Safety Act of 2023 “to prevent future train disasters.”
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