What’s Happening With the East Palestine, OH Train Wreck? An Overview of Reactions and Lawsuits

On February 3rd, 2023, a freight train passing through East Palestine, OH overheated and derailed. Its derailment caused toxic vinyl chloride – and other environmental toxins – to spill and contaminate the environment.

This train wreck had a major impact on the people who live and work in East Palestine. Depending on their location, they had to evacuate or shelter in place right after the accident, and many residents started reporting health problems within 30 minutes of returning home after the evacuation.

In one very sad story, a local woman showed pictures of her daughter’s rash to CNN Health – her tiny hands were red, shiny, and raw. The pediatrician said it was due to exposure to toxic chemicals.

The citizens of East Palestine have been subjected to losses and health problems due to what experts have labeled a completely preventable accident. Many of them have already pursued legal action, but others haven’t taken action, as they are still reeling from the injuries.

Here’s a quick history of what the residents of East Palestine have been through since the train wreck on February 3rd and an overview of their claims against the company.

February 5th, 2023: East Palestine Residents Evacuate and Shelter in Place

On February 5th, Governor Mike DeWine issued an evacuation order for people who lived within a mile of James Street (the nearest street to the accident). He issued a shelter-in-place order for the rest of East Palestine, which was about 5,000 people.

Officials were worried that the toxic vinyl chloride that spilled during the derailment would cause a lethal explosion. They needed to keep people away from the area so that they could perform a controlled explosion in an attempt to minimize the damages.

February 8th, 2023: Returning Home to James Street

DeWine lifted the evacuation order and allowed residents to come back to their homes near James Street. On this day, a resident couple filed the first class-action lawsuit against the company that owned the train, Norfolk Southern. In their complaint, they said that Norfolk Southern had not exercised reasonable care for the residents of East Palestine in the days after the accident, leading to personal and business losses.

February 10th, 2023: Residents Begin Falling Ill

Within a few days of returning to their homes, East Palestine residents started experiencing health problems. For some, the symptoms came on within 30 minutes of arriving home near the site of the train wreck.

People reported a range of illnesses including sore throats, nosebleeds, rashes, headaches, respiratory problems, eye irritation, and nausea. One resident reported that her children’s urgent care doctor said that their coughs and “raw” throats were the result of chemical exposure from the train crash.

Along with health problems, many residents reported a strong chemical smell caused by volatile organic compounds, which  is what gives new mattresses and other VOC-containing items their characteristic strong odor during off-gassing.

At the same time, at least seven government investigators developed the same health problems that East Palestine residents were reporting.

February 18th, 2023: East Palestine Residents Begin to Sue

By February 18th, about two weeks after the incident, at least six class-action lawsuits had been filed by residents of East Palestine.

One class-action lawsuit stated that Norfolk Southern’s freight train put more carcinogenic vinyl chloride into the environment in one week than every industry combined had done over the last 12 months. According to NBC News, a woman named Lisa Sodergen who is a plaintiff in this lawsuit says that her home was “surrounded by toxic black smoke” although it was five miles from the site of the accident.

A variety of complaints were listed in the lawsuits. For example, some plaintiffs sued because the accident caused their property values to drop dramatically. Other plaintiffs sought damages due to the increased risk of health problems in the future and the future costs they were likely to incur due to testing for cancer and other diseases related to vinyl chloride exposure.

March 31st, 2023: The US Justice Department Sues Norfolk Southern

On March 31st, the US Justice Department filed a suit against Norfolk Southern for damages resulting from the train derailment incident and the following environmental disaster.

The DOJ is seeking penalties, relief, and cost recovery for Norfolk Southern’s violations of the Clean Water Act. The suit also seeks to recover penalties and costs under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, due to the railroad company discharging contaminants into the water under

According to CNN, the DOJ has accused Norfolk Southern of “[releasing] toxins into the air, soil, and water, endangering the health and safety of people in surrounding communities.” Seven local waterways were affected, plus all the surrounding air and soil.

The suit also accuses Norfolk Southern of increasing its income while dropping its costs dramatically, leading to drastic budget cuts for the care and maintenance of trains and freight cars. When you give a train car subpar care, its lifespan and performance will  negatively affected. If resources were properly allocated to safety, two alarm failures when the train car causing it to overheat would have been extremely unlikely.

April 6, 2023: Over 30 Lawsuits Have Been Filed

As of April 6, 2023, victims had filed over 30 lawsuits against the company alleging it  caused significant  damages. Residents and businesses that are represented in the lawsuit are seeking the following damages:

• Compensation for property damage
• Compensation for ongoing community-based medical monitoring, and
• Punitive damages

Contact Us for Help If You Have Been Injured

If you have been injured due to a toxic spill from a train derailment or from any other train-related accident, you should reach out for help today. At Satterley & Kelley, we focus on providing our clients with customized legal help so that they can get the economic justice they deserve.

To learn more, contact us today. We’ll start with a free consultation, and then, we’ll help you figure out the next steps forward. Don’t let another company’s negligence ruin your health, harm your family, or hurt your livelihood. Instead, get help today.