A new health clinic is coming to East Palestine, Ohio, amid rising concerns about toxic chemicals from the train derailment there earlier this month, local officials said Monday.
The site will open Tuesday for East Palestine-area residents “who have medical questions or concerns related to the recent train derailment,” according to the Ohio Department of Health.
The move comes after the state attorney general’s office indicated that it would take legal action against railway company Norfolk Southern over the 150-car train derailment on Feb. 3.
Health officials evacuated 1,500 to 2,000 residents in the surrounding area and led a controlled release and burn of five vinyl chloride tankers containing toxins that created the large black billowing cloud seen in images across the web.
Since then, residents have complained of symptoms including coughing.
One woman who lives about 10 miles from the derailment said that she’d smelled chlorine and her eyes watered when she went to let her dog out.
Other locals say they have found dead animals including fish and chicken. Some have already filed lawsuits against Norfolk Southern.
The majority of those suing the rail company say they have either lost income due to the evacuations, were exposed to cancer-causing chemicals or no longer feel safe in their homes, NBC News reported.
“The pollution, which continues to contaminate the area around East Palestine, created a nuisance, damage to natural resources and caused environmental harm,” Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, said in a statement.
Vinyl chloride, the chemical that was released after the incident, is classified as a carcinogen that can increase one’s risk of liver cancer or damage with routine exposure, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
As of Sunday, the EPA and Norfolk Southern had evaluated the air in more than 530 homes without detecting vinyl chloride above concerning levels.
Norfolk Southern announced last week it is committing more than $2 million to East Palestine families and businesses to help with the costs of the evacuation, in addition to $1 million it’s dedicating to the general community.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg recently penned a letter to Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw, urging him to uphold the company’s commitment to protecting those in the affected area.
“The people of East Palestine cannot be forgotten, nor can their pain be simply considered the cost of doing business,” Buttigieg wrote.
