Vice President JD Vance was met with protest signs during his trip to the village on Monday to mark the second anniversary of the 2023 derailment. Two years after the rail disaster, residents continue to call for health monitoring and the enactment of the Stafford Act and a presidential disaster declaration. (Photo by Stephanie Elverd)

EAST PALESTINE — It was just before 9 p.m. on Feb. 3. 2023 — a particularly frigid and quiet night — when an alarm sounded in the locomotive of a Norfolk Southern freight train headed to the company’s yard in Conway, Pennsylvania. The train, known as 32N, took up 9,000 feet of track while traveling east along the railroad’s Fort Wayne Line across Ohio that runs through the heart of East Palestine.

The alarm signaled readings of unusually high temperatures somewhere on one of the train’s 149 cars. The engineer did as he was supposed to, immediately applying the brakes, but by then it was too late. When the engineer applied the brakes to stop the train, the wheel bearing, weakened from heat, failed and 38 cars, including 11 tankers of toxic material, careened off the tracks. By the time the crew exited the train from nearly a mile away, tall flames licked against the night sky and an ominous orange glow fell over the village. East Palestine was on fire.

East Palestine resident Misti Allison said that was a night she would never forget, describing the huge fireball she could see from her driveway when she testified before the U.S. Senate a few weeks after the derailment and subsequent vent-and-burn of vinyl chloride. She described the fear of the unknown and the anxiety of what the future would hold. She advocated for her community’s health.

Two years later, Allison is still advocating and she’s still anxious.

“Families deserve to understand the long-term health implications. They deserve to have a massive effort made in preparation to safeguard not just their futures, but those of their children,” Allison said on the somber second anniversary of the derailment. “As parents, we will stop at nothing to protect our children, and right now all we can do is turn to our leaders like President [Donald] Trump and Vice President [JD] Vance, and ask them to use the monumental power that only they possess as leaders of the free world, to please help secure the health care and future medical needs of the Americans that are affected by the train derailment and chemical exposure.”

Vance was a junior senator from Ohio when he heard Allison’s testimony at the hearing entitled “Improving Rail Safety in Response to the East Palestine Train Derailment” in 2023. On Monday, he returned to the village as vice president.

Allison said the time for talk is over. Now, she is demanding action.

“Our community needs answers and assurance, not lip service and distractions,” she said. “During his visit, Vice President Vance mentioned that local leadership claims economic development is the most pressing issue in town. I strongly disagree.”

Allison recognizes the need for economic recovery. She advocated for that too at the Senate hearing, but while the village’s economy continues to dominate conversations, public health is rarely mentioned – often reduced to a few words if any.

“From the very beginning, health issues have been significantly downplayed,” Allison said.

Health officials, including the federal and state Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), insist residents’ exposure to the chemicals spilled was minimal and any effect on public health now or the future is unlikely.

Allison said that impacts are already being felt. Common symptoms such as nosebleeds, rashes and more extreme ailments persist, and the first wrongful death suit against Norfolk Southern was filed on Monday.

“I find it difficult, but necessary, to even discuss the possible health effects of residents, on the same day that lawsuits were filed alleging the first deaths directly related to the derailment.” she said. “While that’s a matter to be heard in the courts, it serves as a sobering reminder of the devastating reality that chemical exposure brings.”

Allison called on Vance and Trump to meet with local leaders “who have healthcare knowledge.” Only then will the full scope of the disaster be laid bare.

“These discussions will underscore the severe and lasting impact of the disaster and emphasize the urgent need for continued support and intervention, including organizing a healthcare registry, securing funding, and providing necessary care of those affected for years to come,” she said.

Fellow village resident Jess Conard also marked the second anniversary by calling on the Trump Administration to take action. Conard asked for the disaster declaration that went unsigned by Joe Biden. Conard said the declaration would unlock valuable resources for the residents — like the enactment of Social Security Act 1181a that grants free healthcare to environmentally-impacted communities. A declaration would allow for federal assistance, including financial assistance, case management services, and programs to help with the recovery.

“We need an emergency declaration, relocation assistance, and health care for those of us who are still here surviving one day at a time,” Conard said.

On Feb. 3, 2023, Conard and Allison were two young mothers, raising their families in East Palestine. The derailment pushed both into the national spotlight, as they stepped forward to give their town a voice on national networks. Neither turned back.

Allison joined Moms Clean Air Force — an environmental advocacy group focused on protecting children from air pollution and climate change. She threw her hat into the village’s mayoral race and serves as a member of the Columbiana Health Board. Conard first became the community advocate for Erin Brockovich’s East Palestine Justice before accepting a position with Beyond Plastics — an activist group that seeks to end plastic pollution — as its Appalachia Director.

Combined, Allison and Conard have penned numerous op-eds — most recently a piece by Allison was featured in this week’s TIME Magazine. Last year, Conard’s open letter to Biden appeared in Newsweek.

Both women want the federal government to do better for their community that they say was not only damaged by the events set into motion on Feb. 3, 2023 but neglected in the two years since.

“My community was thrust into a nightmare that no town should have to face, and we are still reeling from the aftermath of this disaster,” Conard said. “From the intentional and unnecessary burning of vinyl chloride in the train cars, to the refusal to conduct long-term health monitoring of residents, authorities have forced my community to fend for itself.”