Residents of a small Ohio village are being urged to evacuate their homes as a massive train continues to burn days after its derailment and authorities work to prevent a massive explosion.
About 50 cars derailed in East Palestine at about 9 p.m. Friday. As the cars continue to burn Monday morning, officials said teams at the crash site are trying to prevent a “catastrophic tanker failure” and explosion that could shoot deadly shrapnel up to a mile away.
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The train was carrying a variety of products from Madison, Illinois, to Conway, Pennsylvania, rail operator Norfolk Southern said Saturday. Twenty of the more than 100 cars were carrying hazardous materials, defined as cargo that could pose any kind of danger, “including flammables, combustibles, or environmental risks,” according to Norfolk Southern.
Fourteen cars carrying vinyl chloride were involved in the derailment “and have been exposed to fire,” and at least one “is intermittently releasing the contents of the car through a pressure release device as designed,” Michael Graham, a member of the National Transportation Safety Board, said Saturday.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) urged residents within a mile of the derailment Sunday night to evacuate due to “the potential of a major explosion.” While most people already evacuated as of 9:30 p.m. Sunday, local officials told DeWine that more than 500 individuals declined to leave their homes.
The explosion risk comes from a severe change in temperature inside one of the rail cars, according to DeWine. The governor activated the Ohio National Guard on Sunday.
“We are at a risk now of a catastrophic failure of that container,” Fire Chief Keith Drabick said Sunday, per CNN. “Measures are being taken to try and control that and prevent that from happening.” The news outlet said crew members got a warning about a mechanical failure shortly before the train derailed.
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East Palestine is a village in eastern Ohio, close to the Pennsylvania border. It has a population of about 4,700 people.
