U.S. Senator JD Vance (R-OH) wants the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to look into how residents of East Palestine and nearby towns are affected by the chemicals that were released during the February 3rd Norfolk Southern train derailment.
On Monday, Vance along with U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Bob Casey (D-PA), and John Fetterman (D-PA) sent a letter to NIH Director Lawrence Tabak and NIH’s National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Director Rick Woychik urging them to “help assess and mobilize existing assets and resources to respond to the community’s biomedical research needs.”
The letter claims that the lawmakers have been informed on numerous occasions by the people of East Palestine and the communities in Ohio and Pennsylvania that surround it about the potential effects of both short-term and long-term exposure to the dangerous chemicals released during the train accident.
The lawmakers said that in order to address the concerns of residents they need help from the NIEHS to conduct health research investigations.
“To help address the needs of our constituents and ensure a comprehensive investigation of the exposures and potential health impacts in the affected populations, we request that the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) assist the impacted communities in Ohio and Pennsylvania by helping conduct the needed health research investigations,” the letter said.
The U.S. senators’ letter to the NIH requests that NIEHS work as soon as possible to establish a relationship with the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) to assess the best way to interact with the affected communities and incorporate their feedback into scientific opportunities to understand the short- and long-term effects of this catastrophe on human health.
It says how NIEHS has been vital to federal study on health effects following environmental catastrophes in the past, including the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill and the Libby, Montana, mine’s asbestos vermiculite contamination.
According to the letter, the U.S. senators support all efforts to collaborate with local healthcare groups and connect them with research investigations.
“While we realize that NIH itself does not provide medical monitoring and health care services, we are supportive of all efforts to work in partnership with local health care entities and link any research investigations with local health care services. We believe there may be a role for NIH grantees, potentially alongside other partners such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in collecting bio-specimens to help establish a health baseline that helps residents understand any potential long-term adverse health outcomes, and we hope to understand NIH grantees’ capabilities for such an effort,” the letter states.
The U.S. senators also stated that they stand ready to support the work of NIH protecting public health.
“We appreciate that you already understand that time is of the essence in launching a critical investigation of the exposures and health impacts in the affected populations,” the letter states.
On February 3rd, 50 train carriages, 10 of which were carrying hazardous materials, derailed as a result of a technical problem with a rail car axle, according to federal authorities. There was vinyl chloride in five of the vehicles. Hundreds of residents evacuated due to the controlled release of poisonous gasses that Norfolk Southern carried out on February 6th to stop an explosion.
Officials told East Palestine residents on February 8th that they could safely go home, despite the reports of hundreds of dead fish in the Ohio river near East Palestine and residents complaining of headaches and illness since the derailment.
Despite assurances from government officials that they are safe, many community members said they are fearful and nervous about their exposure to the chemicals and are concerned about the quality of the air and drinking water.
There have also been a growing number of reports of health concerns from residents following the derailment. Some residents last month said medical professionals diagnosed them with bronchitis, lung issues, and rashes that doctors and nurses suspect link to the chemical exposure.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed a nearly $13.5 billion state transportation budget on March 31st, including rail safety measures that lawmakers added in reaction to the February 3rd train derailment and toxic chemical spill in East Palestine.
Congress is also contemplating the bipartisan Railway Safety Act of 2023 sponsored by Vance and Brown that, among other things, would also mandate the continued use of two-person freight train crews, increase the number of hot bearing detectors installed, and ensure that railroads inform the states of the hazardous materials they are carrying.
– – –
Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star and The Star News Network. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected]
