Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg sent a letter to the CEO of Norfolk Southern on Sunday, warning that the company must “demonstrate unequivocal support for the people” impacted by the Ohio toxic train derailment and work to support increased rail safety standards.
Buttigieg told Alan Shaw, the rail company’s chief executive, that the Biden administration would propose a series of measures in the coming days to “immediately improve rail safety for workers and communities,” and call on Congress to raise the cap on fines for companies skirting safety regulations. He also said that the National Transportation Safety Board was investigating the cause of the East Palestine derailment and that the Federal Railroad Administration was looking into potential safety violations. The letter comes as Buttigieg and the Biden administration face mounting criticism over the federal response to the derailment.
BUTTIGIEG BLUNDERS: THREE TIMES PETE HAS CRASHED AS TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY
“I am writing to emphasize the urgent need for Norfolk Southern to demonstrate unequivocal support for the people of East Palestine and the surrounding areas, and to be a part of needed safety improvements across the industry,” Buttigieg wrote. “You have previously indicated to me that you are committed to meeting your responsibilities to this community, but it is clear that area residents are not satisfied with the information, presence, and support they are getting from Norfolk Southern in the aftermath and recovery.”
The transportation secretary went on to note how Norfolk Southern and other rail companies had spent millions lobbying Congress against increased safety standards, before urging that the company “take a leadership position within the rail industry” to help shift the overall posture on such regulations.
“The people of East Palestine cannot be forgotten, nor can their pain be simply considered the cost of doing business,” Buttigieg wrote. “Norfolk Southern must live up to its commitment to make residents whole – and must also live up to its obligation to do whatever it takes to stop putting communities such as East Palestine at risk.”
“Norfolk Southern and your industry must demonstrate that you will not seek to supercharge profits by resisting higher standards that could benefit the safety of workers and the safety of American communities,” he later added.
An 150-car train derailed while carrying at least five hazardous chemicals, including cancer-causing vinyl chloride, in the eastern Ohio town earlier this month. After temporarily evacuating residents, officials intentionally released the chemicals into the air while scrambling to avoid an explosion. Scores of livestock and other animals have died in the weeks since the toxic fumes spread through the small town. Residents, meanwhile, have reported symptoms including rashes, sore throats, nausea, headaches, and burning sensations in their eyes. They have also reported lingering chemical odors.
Despite promises from Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) and the federal and state Environmental Protection Agencies that the water in East Palestine is safe to drink, residents have expressed deep skepticism.
Republicans and East Palestine residents alike lambasted Buttigieg for not addressing the derailment publicly until 10 days after the disaster.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
In the secretary’s first tweets on the matter, posted on Feb. 13, he said he continued “to be concerned about the impacts” of the derailment and laid out investments the Transportation Department was making in railway safety. He also placed some blame for the situation on the Trump administration, which repealed a proposed safety regulation in 2018.
“We’re constrained by law on some areas of rail regulation (like the braking rule withdrawn by the Trump administration in 2018 because of a law passed by Congress in 2015), but we are using the powers we do have to keep people safe,” he wrote in a tweet. “And of course, I’m always ready to work with Congress on furthering (or in some cases, restoring) our capacity to address rail safety issues.”
