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Health concerns are lingering in East Palestine, Ohio, after a train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed on February 3. Residents were temporarily evacuated from the area two days later to allow for a controlled burn of the chemicals, which sent a large plume of black smoke into the sky.
Health officials have been monitoring the air and water in town, while some residents have reported nausea, headaches, red eyes and rashes.
A local doctor tells us what the medical community there is seeing.
Who is he? Nicholas Proia is a pulmonologist in the area and a clinical professor of internal medicine at Northeast Ohio Medical University, not far from East Palestine.
What's the big deal? The chemicals the Norfolk Southern train was transporting have the potential to cause a range of health issues.
Want more journalism on health? Listen to the Consider This episode on hidden viruses and how to prevent the next pandemic
What are people saying? Proia said pulmonary doctors in the area were bracing for a rise in patients after the derailment and controlled burn, but that he hadn't experienced it.
We really have not seen much in the way of at least respiratory illness come in. What we have heard, mostly through the media, and a few patients will say, perhaps a rash or a foul smell. But really no overt shortness of breath, or respiratory failure has been connected to this.
Proia said the main thing to monitor now and into the future is water.
The overriding concern for everybody involved is ... a lot of these people don't have municipal water supplies, but instead they rely on wells. And I think their biggest concern is: over time, are the chemicals that were dissipated throughout all this getting into the waterways? Are they ever going to make it into the well water?
And he added there were still unknowns.
It's also a caveat to remember that you're only going to find what you're looking for. And who knows what else is out there, especially after a large fire with a bunch of different, pretty interesting chemicals.
Meanwhile, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is furious with Norfolk Southern, telling NPR on Wednesday that it had "given the middle finger to the good people of Pennsylvania and Ohio" in the way it had handled its response. He said authorities on his side of the border would also monitor water.
I've authorized testing of all of the wells on the Pennsylvania side and the public water system to ensure that local residents have the comfort of knowing what's coming out of the tap is safe. We've seen no concerning readings yet, but we're going to continue to test for months and months and months, if not years.
So, what now? The EPA announced this week it had taken control of the cleanup, requiring Norfolk Southern to foot the bill — not just for its own plan, but for any work done by the agency.
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Alejandra Marquez contributed to this report contributed to this story
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