Two weeks after train derailment FEMA to deploy team to assist East Palestine OH in cleanup

Reality check: Republican governor is the one who delayed aid for Ohio citizens endangered by the derailment. In response to whether he would be requesting aid he indicated he didn’t see the need. - as reported in the serious conservative press.


“As thousands of residents of East Palestine, Ohio, struggle to find safe accommodation and tend to their alarming symptoms in the aftermath of a disastrous train derailment, Republican Governor Mike DeWine assured the public on Tuesday that he is “not seeing” any problems.

DeWine said this in response to a question on whether he was satisfied with the Biden administration’s response … the Ohio governor said while he has spoken with President Biden, who offered assistance, he felt that no further assistance was needed.”


New Republic
 

Welcome, Mark.

I think we've blamed everyone, blamed the feds, blamed the state government, DeWine, blamed the railroad, blamed the last administration, the current administration and socialism.

Dated Feb. 17th -- After announcing Thursday he had requested federal help in connection with the East Palestine train derailment, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine also revealed that FEMA had said the state did not qualify for their assistance.

“At this point, based on what FEMA has told us – and continues to tell us – my chief of staff talked to them again this morning, we do not qualify for assistance," Gov. DeWine reiterated during a Friday press conference.

https://www.wkyc.com/article/news/s...ewine/95-27a12997-51cb-4b19-ac50-f68ed08d8d0c

Since then FEMA has changed course and sent in a team. Even Buttigieg has announced he will visit.
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Since this accident happened on February 3rd there have been more railroad accidents.

https://news.yahoo.com/many-train-derailments-us-2023-172556874.html
 
Myrtle said:
Let's see if I can make my response clearer. All is more than some. I was actually agreeing with you and taking it a step further. It's not just some politicians or political parties who smear to take advantage. They all do. If you think it's only the politician or the party that you dislike that does this you are fooling yourself.





The wreck happened on the third of February.

FEMA reverses course, will send assistance team to East Palestine following train derailment - Feb. 17, 2023​

https://www.wkyc.com/article/news/s...lment/95-a8b15b75-fd50-4e9b-acd6-c99a36eeba10

I've also seen DeWine acknowledge that he and FEMA have been in touch since the accident happened. FEMA has not refused to talk to him. But as the linked story clearly states FEMA reversed course and said they would send an assistance team yesterday.

Now, finally, I hope they get some help other than that of the EPA. The EPA’s administrator, Michael Regan was there on Thursday the 16th. Here's a link.

‘Trust the government’: EPA seeks to reassure Ohio residents near toxic spill​

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news...e-ohio-derailment-toxic-chemicals-epa-meeting
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What is it that you expect FEMA to do for the good people living in East Palestine? I think FEMA isn’t the cure for disasters that some think it is. The President has to first declare it a disaster are before they kick into gear and do something, for example, supply temporary housing or shelter, fresh water supplies, and giving guidance to people that need additional help. I don’t know if the President has declared East Palestine a disaster area or not.

FEMA seldom writes anyone a check, although they will help someone that has suffered a loss and needs funds to move or repair by guiding them to get a loan through the SBA, if their business has taken a loss.

Can you imagine owning a nice home there and what it’s property value us now?
 

I wonder what sort of response we would like to see here. Do we welcome greater regulation to prevent similar accidents from happening? Or do people still feel a nanny state emasculates us as a people or places too many restrictions on free enterprise?

I get that people feel badly for the victims but is the solution really so obvious? Can those who feel that way generalize what they think the proper response of government should be and also spell out the kinds of disasters that should be handled in similar fashion? How about the senseless shooting of thousands of children in schools, could tougher regulations help there?
 
First, it's not a gun control thread but there are several active on the forum. I believe this is the only thread about the accident. Would you mind?

I understand that many people think it's wrong for the people of this town to expect anything from government. I see it as useless.

In response to Been There, I think people wanted a bridge from disaster to resolution. They wanted short term help. Some said they wanted help to get their children away from the chemicals, and they wanted help to keep living their lives. Some wanted to get away from whatever is causing their skin rashes. Many people live from paycheck to paycheck and don't have the cost of a few weeks in a hotel or rent for an apartment on a moment's notice. FEMA has responded to political pressure and they are coming in. If there's nothing they can do why did they give in? It would be good to know what they are doing. Maybe just posing for the news cameras.

Permanent help may eventually come from a settlement with the railroad, although one could die waiting to see a lawsuit settled. One could also die waiting for a politician to provide help unless the one waiting is somehow helpful to the politicians career.

As far as regulation goes I think it would be hard for a thinking person to answer how that should be changed until this accident, the several that have followed and the many that went before are investigated. Some will go with a quick answer that follows their political persuasion. My answer would depend on a lot of things. What is causing the accidents? Is there a common cause that repeats? Are they all different and so you can't draw a conclusion? I'm sure there are many factors to consider. It would be nice to see all that considered but the response will most likely be quick and very political.

I truly hope those in DC, Ohio and around the country who are against helping these people never experience a disaster up close and personal, or if they do I hope they've done everything right financially and they will be all set on their own.
 
Myrtle said:
First, it's not a gun control thread but there are several active on the forum. I believe this is the only thread about the accident. Would you mind?

I understand that many people think it's wrong for the people of this town to expect anything from government. I see it as useless.

In response to Been There, I think people wanted a bridge from disaster to resolution. They wanted short term help. Some said they wanted help to get their children away from the chemicals, and they wanted help to keep living their lives. Some wanted to get away from whatever is causing their skin rashes. Many people live from paycheck to paycheck and don't have the cost of a few weeks in a hotel or rent for an apartment on a moment's notice. FEMA has responded to political pressure and they are coming in. If there's nothing they can do why did they give in? It would be good to know what they are doing. Maybe just posing for the news cameras.

Permanent help may eventually come from a settlement with the railroad, although one could die waiting to see a lawsuit settled. One could also die waiting for a politician to provide help unless the one waiting is somehow helpful to the politicians career.

As far as regulation goes I think it would be hard for a thinking person to answer how that should be changed until this accident, the several that have followed and the many that went before are investigated. Some will go with a quick answer that follows their political persuasion. My answer would depend on a lot of things. What is causing the accidents? Is there a common cause that repeats? Are they all different and so you can't draw a conclusion? I'm sure there are many factors to consider. It would be nice to see all that considered but the response will most likely be quick and very political.

I truly hope those in DC, Ohio and around the country who are against helping these people never experience a disaster up close and personal, or if they do I hope they've done everything right financially and they will be all set on their own.
Click to expand...

Well my response wasn’t about gun control either. It was a request to clarify the grievance, specify a remedy and generalize the situations we think are deserving of the same remedies. But if this is a thread devoted only to nursing feelings of victimization for just a single one off situation I withdraw.
 
I don't think the residents are claiming victimization, nor do I think they are being victimized. They need some help dealing in a situation that is out of the normal & very few people will ever experience.

We don't need more regulations or laws - we just need to enforce what is already on the books. No knee-jerk emotional reactions. If something is outdated, then update it logically.

We don't need, or want a nanny state - but is there anything wrong in providing initial assistance to our own people when the totally unexpected happens? This derailment was not something anyone was given a heads-up on that it was on the way like bad weather warnings.

IMHO, we are throwing massive amounts of money out to other countries with no end in sight, so why can't some of that money be spent on our own people?
 
Nathan said:
While people and politicians are pointing fingers at the Administration, the residents of East Palestine are busy pursuing recourse in the appropriate manner:
Residents near Ohio train derailment begin to file lawsuits

"A group of people who live or work near the derailment site have filed a class action suit against Norfolk Southern. The Feb. 3 incident resulted in a fire and chemical spill, forcing residents within a roughly 1-mile radius to evacuate. Several days later, the rail company released and burned vinyl chloride — a flammable gas — a move officials said would alleviate the risk of an explosion.

Authorities said residents could return home two days after that.

"Nobody can tell us what we should do other than 'It’s safe, go head on back in there,'" Feezle said, his voice crackly. "And the fish are dying and animals are dying and I can hardly talk and my chest hurts."

His lawsuit is one of at least six class action suits already filed against Norfolk Southern since the accident. For the most part, those suing the company allege that they’ve lost income due to evacuations, were exposed to cancer-causing chemicals and no longer feel safe in their homes.

Norfolk Southern said it was "unable to comment directly on litigation." But in a public update on Thursday, the company noted that in addition to its ongoing cleanup work, it was distributing more than $2 million in financial assistance to affected families and businesses to help with the costs of the evacuation, as well as creating a $1 million fund for the community."
"
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More than likely, the judge may decide to lump these lawsuits together instead of hearing so many different CA suits. I think they did that when we had the Tylenol debacle. It makes sense to do it that way, instead of tying up the courts for a year to hear 3,4,5 different class action suits.
 
I would imagine that housing prices have plummeted in that area. Like Detroit just a few years ago, you may be able to get some great deals on a few nice homes.
 
I don’t know anything about vinyl chloride. How toxic is it? I do know the people in Ohio are really upset with their Governor. Well, what did they expect from a lame duck?

I remember when we had the 3-mile island event near here. Carter and Thornburg toured the plant and they each drank water from a tap inside the building on TV to show the residents that the water was safe for drinking. It wasn’t the water we were concerned about. It was the air. Duh! I will say that the people really liked Dick Thornburg. He was the real deal.
 
The crew of the train seems to have done everything right. It's just not that easy to stop a 150 car train.

The crew of the freight train carrying dangerous chemicals that derailed in Ohio earlier this month received a warning about an overheating wheel bearing and tried to slow the train before it came off the tracks, according to an interim report released on Thursday by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

The wheel bearing was heating up for several miles before reaching 253F hotter than the air temperature, investigators found, a dangerous level requiring a train to stop to prevent disaster.

The train engineer put the brakes on and the automatic braking system activated, the report said. But the train still derailed and was engulfed in a huge fireball, near the town of East Palestine, on 3 February.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/feb/23/ohio-train-derailment-overheated-wheel-crash

Perhaps they shouldn't be allowed to transport hazardous materials in a 150 car train. A 20 or 30 car train would have been a lot easier to stop.
 
SeniorBen said:
The crew of the train seems to have done everything right. It's just not that easy to stop a 150 car train.

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Perhaps they shouldn't be allowed to transport hazardous materials in a 150 car train. A 20 or 30 car train would have been a lot easier to stop.
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For once we agree, Ben.

In another story I read that most of the hazardous cars were together and only 1 was separate. It seems that separating those cars might help too.
 
hearlady said:
I thought I just heard that the crew or Norfolk Southern had some warnings that they ignored.
Click to expand...

Hearlady, there's this. It's a long story.

Train crew had little warning before Ohio wreck, probe finds​

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio (AP) — The crew operating a freight train that derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, didn’t get much warning before dozens of cars went off the tracks, and there is no indication that crew members did anything wrong, federal investigators said Thursday as they released a preliminary report into the fiery wreck that prompted a toxic chemical release and an evacuation.

https://apnews.com/article/politics...e&utm_medium=TopNews&utm_campaign=position_04
 
Myrtle said:
Hearlady, there's this. It's a long story.

Train crew had little warning before Ohio wreck, probe finds​

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio (AP) — The crew operating a freight train that derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, didn’t get much warning before dozens of cars went off the tracks, and there is no indication that crew members did anything wrong, federal investigators said Thursday as they released a preliminary report into the fiery wreck that prompted a toxic chemical release and an evacuation.

https://apnews.com/article/politics...e&utm_medium=TopNews&utm_campaign=position_04
Click to expand...
Oh, ok.
 
Myrtle said:
Hearlady, there's this. It's a long story.

Train crew had little warning before Ohio wreck, probe finds​

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio (AP) — The crew operating a freight train that derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, didn’t get much warning before dozens of cars went off the tracks, and there is no indication that crew members did anything wrong, federal investigators said Thursday as they released a preliminary report into the fiery wreck that prompted a toxic chemical release and an evacuation.

https://apnews.com/article/politics...e&utm_medium=TopNews&utm_campaign=position_04
Click to expand...
A wheel bearing over heated to 215 degrees and ran for another 30 miles or so before complete failure. Heard one report those sensors/alarms can be overriden and ignored. Apparently the way it's set up the crew has to notified and does not come up on board the train.

A 2 mile long train with 3 crew members-2 crew and a trainee. It was like car 23 or something.
 
 
February 24th Town Hall with Erin Brockovich
14:00 - Interview with resident who lives 30 miles from East Palestine;
22:00 - Attorney Thomas Bevan introduction;
25:30 - Erin Brockovich presentation;
47:37 - Attorney Mikel Watts details the derailment atrocities.

This video <-- at 45:37 continues from where the first one cut out.
Here is the East Palestine Justice <-- website.
 

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