Trump’s Ohio Visit Puts Spotlight on Rail-Safety Rules He Ended
- Train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed Feb. 3 in Ohio
- Residents fearing exposure are unhappy with official response
Wreckage from a Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, on Feb. 20.
Photographer: Matthew Hatcher/BloombergDonald Trump visited the small Ohio town reeling from the toxic fallout of a Norfolk Southern Corp. train derailment in the hope of capitalizing politically on residents’ anger about the initial response by the Biden administration. But the trip also highlights the ex-president’s rolling back of rules that former regulators say could have improved rail safety.
Trump met briefly on Wednesday with officials and residents affected by the Feb. 3 accident and brought bottled water. The derailment spewed hazardous chemicals into the air and ground of the community of about 4,700 people near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border, forcing an evacuation as authorities intentionally vented and burned tank cars to prevent an explosion.