Norfolk Southern Corporation, the railroad giant under fire after a fiery derailment of one of its freight trains in eastern Ohio, has pulled out of a community town hall scheduled for Wednesday, citing “increasing physical threats” from “outside parties.”
The announcement came about two hours before the scheduled event, as residents of East Palestine, Ohio, and surrounding communities sought answers about the disaster’s impact on human health and the environment. The Norfolk Southern train that derailed on February 3 was carrying toxic and flammable materials, including hundreds of thousands of pounds of vinyl chloride, an organic chemical commonly used in the production of plastics that has been linked to several types of cancer.
The train operator said in a statement who had hoped to participate in the town hall and share updated information, but decided against it in light of the threat.
“We understand that many are angry and frustrated right now,” the company said. “Unfortunately, after consulting with community leaders, we have become increasingly concerned about the increased physical threat to employees and community members around this event due to the increased possibility of outside party participation.”
The company did not elaborate on the threat.
Initially, city hall would have allowed the public to ask questions of officials and the railroad, but the event was later changed to “an open house with an information desk for residents,” WKBN-TV reported. It’s unclear whether the change was made because of Norfolk Southern’s decision to back off.
In its statement, Norfolk Southern said it remains “committed to Eastern Palestine.”
“We want to continue the dialogue with the community and address their concerns, and our people will remain in East Palestine, respond to this situation, and meet with the residents,” he said. “We’re not going anywhere.”
Two days after the crash, authorities ordered an immediate evacuation for everyone within one mile of the crash site because of the potential for a “catastrophic tanker failure that could cause an explosion with the potential for deadly shrapnel to travel miles.” Officials eventually conducted what they described as a “controlled burn” of vinyl chloride to prevent a potential explosion.
In a letter to Norfolk Southern’s CEO on Tuesday, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) accused the company of mismanaging the incident and said that “prioritizing a hasty and arbitrary timeline for reopening rail lines injects unnecessary risk and creates confusion.” “