At last report, the Ohio Emergency Management Agency had declared that successful containment of the spilled chemicals meant no further derailment-related die-offs were expected, and that “live fish were returning to Leslie Run,” the nearest small waterway. But local residents remain concerned about the health of waterways. Many worry that toxins may have settled into sediments, posing a persistent danger to benthic organisms (plants and animals at the bottom of the waterway). Those toxins are ready to be released at the slightest disturbance—as simple as a dog chasing a stick, or a wading child.
Ohio train derailment: Chemicals that ‘may be of health concern’ found in East Palestine
An analysis of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data by Texas A&M University has found elevated levels of nine chemicals that “may be of health concern” to residents of East Palestine, Ohio. The small town of 5,000 played host to a nightmarish scenario early this month when a train carrying hazardous materials crashed, leaking toxins into the soil, water and air.