Vance, Zeldin ask for EPA probe into East Palestine train derailment response

Two Trump administration officials are calling for an independent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) investigation into the government’s response to the 2023 East Palestine, Ohio, train derailment — which caused toxic chemicals to spill into the town.

In a joint Friday letter, Vice President JD Vance and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin asked the EPA’s acting inspector general, Nicole Murley, to conduct a “comprehensive, independent” probe into the Biden administration’s handling of the incident.

The request follows this week’s release of a government watchdog group’s initial assessment of the derailment, which found that chemicals spilled during this event could have endangered thousands of Americans.

“For over three years, the people of East Palestine and surrounding communities have lived with the aftermath of the critical decisions of the Biden-Harris Administration and Norfolk Southern,” Vance and Zeldin wrote.

“The response to the derailment, subsequent controlled release and combustion of hazardous materials, environmental contamination, and prolonged concerns regarding air, soil, water, and public health warrant continued scrutiny and oversight to ensure appropriate accountability and inform future actions,” they continued.

Documents obtained by the Government Accountability Project found that the federal Interagency Modeling Atmospheric Assessment Center (IMAAC) projected a day after the train derailment that around 18,000 people may have been exposed to toxic substances at levels “that could possibly result in at least severe injury.”

IMAAC specifically reported that 17,972 of these people faced potential phosgene exposure and 312 may have been exposed to hydrogen chloride.

In the weeks following the incident, a chemical plume — caused by a controlled burn of the spilled chemicals — reached 16 states, researchers found.

Phosgene, which is used to make pesticides and plastic, can cause breathing problems, headaches, blurred vision and other symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Hydrogen chloride can be formed from the burning of plastics and creates hydrochloric acid when it makes contact with water, the CDC states. Both hydrogen chloride and hydrochloric acid are corrosive, cause respiratory issues and can burn eyes and skin.

Vance and Zeldin said in their Friday letter that identified shortcomings in the government response to this incident could result in changes to emergency-response procedures, environmental monitoring or coordination efforts between government agencies.

“The people of East Palestine deserve a government that is transparent and accountable to them,” Vance wrote in a Friday social media post announcing this request. “If the Biden administration withheld public health risks from the community, they must be held accountable.”