East Palestine, Ohio, residents expressed anger after Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw failed to attend a town hall meeting almost a month after the company’s Feb. 3 derailment and toxic fire.
Some attendees yelled “Where’s Alan?” during the meeting, and Shaw was criticized for missing an earlier meeting two weeks after the incident.
The CEO met with local officials and some railroad employees last month. Mother Candice Desanzo attended the meeting with her two young sons.
She demanded to speak with Shaw, criticizing the rail company for prioritizing getting trains back up and running instead of helping the residents first.
At the meeting, residents suffering from illnesses due to the disaster confronted representatives for the rail line.
They demanded to know if they would be relocated from homes, they are afraid to continue living in.
The railroad said it was ready to remove contaminated soil from underneath the tracks but has not discussed buying people’s homes and moving them elsewhere.
Residents fear that the dioxins, toxic chemical compounds that can remain in the environment for a long period, will have lasting effects on their and their children’s health.
Despite reassurances from government officials and experts, residents have reported experiencing negative effects such as headaches, dizziness, and nausea since the crash.
The contentious meeting came just a day after leaders of the nation’s largest rail unions claimed that workers cleaning up the toxic derailment site are getting sick and pushed the Biden administration for additional safety measures.
The presidents of a dozen unions met with administration officials to state their case and express concern, as a new independent study found that the chemicals could pose long-term health risks.
Nearly 5,000 people were forced to evacuate following the spill and subsequent burning of the toxic chemicals.
»Alan Shaw fails to attend town hall meeting in East Palestine«
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