EPA seeks to calm fears over toxic chemicals in Ohio train derailment

Environmental Protection Agency administrator visits site as rail operator Norfolk Southern faces 'potential liability' over incident

Portions of a Norfolk and Southern freight train on fire after it derailed in East Palestine, Ohio. AP

The fire is seen from Melissa Smith's farm in East Palestine. AP

The train on fire. AP

Smoke rises from the derailed cargo train. AFP

People take shelter at an American Red Cross evacuation support centre. AFP

Firefighters attend the scene. AFP

Michael Regan, head of the Environmental Protection Agency, sought on Thursday to quell mounting frustration with the Biden administration's response to a freight train derailment that unleashed toxic chemicals in eastern Ohio earlier this month, vowing in a visit to the site to “be here as long as it takes to ensure the health and safety of this community”.

“EPA will exercise our oversight and our enforcement authority under the law to be sure we’re getting the result that the community deserves,” Mr Regan said in a news conference in East Palestine, Ohio, following meetings with local officials and residents.

“We are absolutely going to hold Norfolk Southern Corp accountable — and I can promise you that.”

The EPA already notified Norfolk Southern of its “potential liability” to pay for clean-up and the agency’s response costs under federal law.

Monitoring so far shows the air does not contain hazardous levels of chemicals, Mr Regan said, including vinyl chloride that was vented from one rail car in a controlled release on February 5.

Indoor air screenings are available to local residents, and round-the-clock monitoring of the air and water also will continue.

President Joe Biden's administration and state officials have come under scrutiny amid lingering odours, reports of animal deaths and continued complaints of headaches and other ailments potentially tied to the hazardous chemical release in the community near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border.

Senator Joe Manchin, a West Virginia Democrat, lashed out on Thursday, calling Mr Regan’s visit overdue.

“While I am glad EPA Administrator Regan will visit the site today, it is unacceptable that it took nearly two weeks for a senior administration official to show up,” Mr Manchin said in a news release.