EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — Two East Palestine mothers are speaking-up loudly, demanding more specific information on how Norfolk Southern and the federal government will address long-term clean-up and community assistance following the Feb. 3 train derailment.
Jessica Conard, who is an East Palestine mother of three sons, shared her story with other area homeowners during a town hall meeting set-up by East Palestine Justice at the Main Street Theater in Columbiana, Ohio on March 23. The organization also hosted a town hall meeting in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania.
Conard said she and her family have returned to their home, which is on a private water well system, but even though well tests have so far not shown any contamination, her family will only drink bottled water and have many health and safety concerns.
“We want to make sure that it’s safe and I don’t think that we have the answers to really know,” Conard said. “I was told that it was fine, which is not an objective measure, and I still don’t have those objective measures which is really unfortunate.”
Conard believes both Norfolk Southern and the federal government need to release more details on how they will address long-term health, well-being and property issues.
“I would really like to see the government step in and say, 'we’re going to make this medical testing easy for you, we’re going to put a mobile unit in your town in areas where people are home-bound and are unable to leave,'" Conard said. “We have no clear guidelines or criteria as to what the assistance center is paying back, it’s a case-by-case basis."
On March 22, another East Palestine Mother, Misti Allison, testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation in Washington D.C.. Allison told federal lawmakers East Palestine area residents deserve more detailed safety plans as soon as possible.
“Everybody loves living in East Palestine and we would like to stay there, but only if it’s safe and so there’s a lot of confusion in the community about whether long term if it’s a good choice," Allison said. “We’ve heard time and time again from Norfolk Southern that they’re going to make it right and that they’re looking into long-term health care monitoring assistance and home value protection, but details of that plan have not been disclosed.”
News 5 turned to Norfolk Southern in the search for answers, and the company issued the following statement for our story:
On the long term plans, we are still working out details, but I want to be clear that they are commitments - not "we are thinking about doing these things."
We remain committed to this community.
As of this morning, we have removed more than 7.8 million gallons of liquids and 8,400 tons of solid waste from the community. We will continue to work with EPA and Ohio and PA officials until the job is done. We've also contributed nearly $25 million dollars to the community in the form of direct financial assistance to residents, replacement gear for fire departments, and other community contributions.
Meanwhile, Conard said East Palestine Justice is working on hosting a homeowner resources clinic in East Palestine sometime in mid-April. Conard is hoping Norfolk Southern and the federal government will release more specific safety plan details in the coming weeks.
“There has certainly been a lack of transparency and it’s been very confusing to find accurate information," Conard said. "I think that we want to make sure we’re doing right by the people and I don’t think that’s been done.”
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