The area surrounding East Palestine, Ohio is suffering after a train of poisonous chemicals derailed on Feb. 3.
The initial derailment of the Norfolk Southern train on the evening of Feb. 3 was followed by the leaking of toxic vinyl chloride, a cancer-causing chemical.
The 150-car train had 50 cars damaged by the derailment. Of these, ten were full of dangerous vinyl chloride.
Toxic Chemicals Exploded in Mushroom Cloud
The toxic material was intentionally “burned off” in a massive fire on Feb. 6.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, along with Norfolk Southern, said the “controlled release” was being done to stop an even worse explosion. It’s only gotten worse since then.
Now, residents are getting sick; thousands of fish are dead and worries are growing about the poisoning of 10% of America’s water supply via the Ohio River.
This will go down as one of the worst disasters in US history. Although the full impact remains to be seen. The blame for how this happened also needs to continue to be investigated.
Vinyl chloride bonds with water molecules to form a poison brew. It is also infecting the water supply, including a reported 3,500 fish already dead and toxicity levels in the crucially important Ohio River.
The nightmare scenario is already causing breathing problems, severe headaches, and more health problems in residents around the area. The long-term effects and cancer rates remain to be seen.
The area is also near the heart of Amish country, one of the last communities that has a degree of independence from the federal government and food self-sufficiency, as well as resistance to vaccine mandates.
🧵Chemical Warfare Against The Amish🧵
In this thread we'll examine why the East Palestine Ohio 'Chemical Accident' may have been a coordinated attack from state actors to harm the agricultural community known as "The Amish" by poisoning the rainwater & arable land in the area. pic.twitter.com/dujLatTgbG
— 𝓐𝖊𝖔𝖓 𝓐𝖓𝖎𝖒𝖚𝖘 🗽 🏴☠️ (@AeonAnimus) February 14, 2023
Disturbing Questions Dominate Investigation
Why did this happen and how? Why now? The long-term damage to farmland, soil quality, and the water table is terrifying to even consider at this point.
As an environmental analyst and former Chemical Safety Board (CSB) member Gerald Poje noted, it is “horrific” to even consider the number of toxic chemicals released in the environment, including the earth and water.
The fact that it was “purposefully” done is all the more disturbing, Poje points out. Officially, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says not to worry and that there isn’t a danger to human beings.
People who left their homes when the massive black clouds swelled up and the air turned into a scene like Armageddon are now fine to return home, the EPA claims.
Best video I’ve found explaining the chemical aspect of the Ohio train disaster
Extremely toxic liquid vinyl chloride was leaking so authorities planned a “controlled burn” but that created hydrogen chloride acid that clings to water
Basically acid rainpic.twitter.com/gIsaKqm114
— DC_Draino (@DC_Draino) February 13, 2023
The Bottom Line
There is no convincing reason to trust the word of the EPA or federal government. They have no liability if this gives many people cancer. Norfolk Southern has a vested interest in directly lying about how serious this could be, especially long-term.
The long-term effects of this disaster will be felt for many years to come. The impact on farming communities and people like the Amish will decrease America’s self-sufficiency and food supply even further as the global situation worsens.
This article appeared in StatesmanPost and has been published here with permission.
