EAST PALESTINE, OH – The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) confirmed that there were said to be shipments of contaminated liquid and soil that were carried by a train that derailed in February.

The agency told the train operator to stop the shipments and review plans for disposal for some of the toxic materials, but this seems to have made things more complicated with the residents of the town worrying about any long-lasting health effects from the contaminated substances.

Officials from Texas and Michigan heard about the derailment but were not given an “adequate heads up” that the hazardous waste would be a part of the shipments.  It came as an obstacle when it was going to be directly given to them to dispose of it.

Some parts of Ohio and Norfolk Southern, a few EPA-certified facilities, will be given shipments that contain the same chemicals that caused the derailment. A facility in Vickery, Ohio will dispose of the contaminated substances, and Norfolk Southern will ship the solid waste to Heritage Incinerator in East Liverpool, Ohio.

The waste seems to be causing more trouble than anyone thought as there are residents within the East Palestine area that are impacted by this derailment. Norfolk Southern released and burned dangerous contents from a train car, and it heavily affected residents by giving them burning lips, itchy eyes, rashes, and diarrhea.

Certain teams will be connecting with people affected by this chemical uproar and to care for and aid.  Even the Biden administration will be helping with the sudden cause of events.

However, residents are not receiving enough information about the crash.  The mayor of East Palestine, Trent Conaway, and the residents were all furious with the President’s sudden leave to Ukraine instead of coming to support and help.  This made it the “biggest slap in the face.”

In an interview with the New York Post, 46-year-old Jami Cozza, a longtime resident in East Palestine and town leader, says she is not only fighting for her family’s life, but she feels like she’s fighting for the whole town’s life. When she’s walking around hearing all kinds of stories, they’re not from people, “They’re from my family. They’re from my friends that I’ve grown up with,” she said. “People are desperate right now. We’re dying slowly. They’re poisoning us all slowly.”

She is determined to keep the light on the town and will not back down even if the town becomes “old news.”

Overall, the crash and chemicals have proven to be dangerous and have begun to cause problems for those who were unfortunate to be caught in this situation.