Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine marveled on Feb. 14 that the cargo of a train that derailed in Ohio on Feb. 3 was not defined as “high hazardous material.”
DeWine said Congress should act on what he called an “absurd” situation as the train was not deemed highly hazardous because only a few cars had highly dangerous contents.
But key committees in the Republican-controlled House are holding their peace as investigations of the derailment and its environmental impact proceed.
A spokesperson for the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, led by Chairman Sam Graves (R-Mo.), said the committee was talking with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration, and the railroad involved, Norfolk Southern.
“We will continue to monitor the situation and NTSB’s ongoing investigation,” the spokesperson told The Epoch Times in a Feb. 14 email.
That same day the board updated its investigation, describing one possible culprit in the incident, which occurred near the Pennsylvania border in East Palestine, Ohio.
“NTSB investigators have identified and examined the rail car that initiated the derailment. Surveillance video from a residence showed what appears to be a wheel bearing in the final stage of overheat failure moments before the derailment,” the agency’s incident webpage states.
A spokesperson for Rep. James Comer (R-Texas), now the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, did not have any updates for The Epoch Times as of the afternoon of Feb. 14.
And a spokesperson for the House Natural Resources Committee, led by Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.), did not respond to a request for comment.
A Feb. 14 statement from Debra Shore of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) noted the agency had not detected vinyl chloride or hydrogen chloride in the 396 local homes it has screened so far through a voluntary program.
“State and local agencies are conducting sampling throughout the Ohio River to ensure drinking water intakes aren’t affected, and EPA is continuing to assist the state with sampling efforts at water treatment intake points along the Ohio River,” Shore wrote.
At a Feb. 14 press conference, DeWine said a controlled burn of freight cars containing vinyl chloride was motivated by the desire to avoid an explosion that could have “[sent] deadly shrapnel in all directions.”
DeWine and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro coordinated on Feb. 6 to set up an evacuation zone near the derailment. They and other officials declared that residents could safely return on Feb. 8.
In addition to vinyl chloride, cars involved in the incident contained ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, ethylhexyl acrylate, isobutylene, and butyl acrylate, according to a Feb. 10 letter from EPA to Norfolk Southern.
DeWine noted that Ohio’s public utilities commission informed him the derailed train was not deemed to be “high hazardous” because only a few of its cars contained highly dangerous contents.
“Therefore, the railroad was not required to notify anyone here in Ohio about what was in the rail cars coming through our state,” he said.
“Frankly, if this is true, and I’m told it’s true, it’s absurd,” he said, adding, “Congress needs to take a look at how these things are handled.”
The Epoch Times has reached out to the EPA and the Federal Railroad Administration for additional comment.