After the "controlled" vent and burn of toxic chemicals following a train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, residents as far as 15 km away are reporting that animals are falling ill and dying.."I live just north of this area. It’s bad," said one anonymous Ohio woman on Twitter. "People are losing chickens and other pets. The streams are full of dead fish and frogs. If it’s in the creeks, it’s certainly in the water table. Many people in this area have wells.".On Feb 3, a total of 50 train cars derailed and caught fire near the town of 4,800. Twenty of the 141 cars were classified as carrying hazardous materials, and 14 of those were carrying chemical vinyl chloride, a colourless gas used to make PVC plastics..According to the National Cancer Institute, exposure to vinyl chloride can increase the risk of developing liver, brain and lung cancers, as well as lymphoma and leukemia. Short-term symptoms of vinyl chloride toxicity include headaches, dizziness and unclear vision..The National Transportation Safety Board found a mechanical problem one car's axle caused the derailment. The trains were also not equipped with electronically controlled pneumatic brakes, which would have reduced the severity of the event. In 2017, Norfolk Southern, the transportation company that operated the trains, successfully lobbied to have regulations repealed requiring trains carrying hazardous materials to have pneumatic brakes..In order to prevent the trains from exploding, emergency crews decided to conduct a controlled burn to allow for the more gradual release of the chemicals. All residents within a one mile radius of the town were evacuated as the chemicals were released into the air. By Feb. 9, the evacuation had been lifted and residents were told they could safely return to their homes..The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) claimed Sunday they have not detected "any levels of concern in the community that can be attributed to the incident at this time." Both Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro said the air quality had been sampled multiple times in the region and found to be below levels of concern. .However, the testimonials of surrounding residents have cast doubt on those assurances. Hundreds of fish were found dead in Leslie Run, a stream located five miles away from the train derailment. According to the US Centres for Disease Control some vinyl chloride can dissolve in water and migrate to groundwater..Taylor Holzer, who owns a dairy farm near East Palestine, said several of the foxes he keeps on his property have become mortally ill. “Out of nowhere, he just started coughing really hard, just shut down, and he had liquid diarrhea and just went very fast,” Holzer said of one of his foxes..“Smoke and chemicals from the train, that’s the only thing that can cause it, because it doesn’t just happen out of nowhere,” Holzer said. “The chemicals that we’re being told are safe in the air, that’s definitely not safe for the animals … or people.”.One anonymous East Palestine resident said their cat had to be put down after being poisoned from the chemicals. "He was showing signs of congestive heart failure, extremely laboured breathing, fluid in his lungs and around his heart, massively elevated liver enzymes and low blood pressure," they said.."We couldn't afford the $18,000 for treatment so we had to put him down. It's very hard to think that others might be faced with the same situation.".A woman from North Lima, located 15 km away from the derailment site, said she went outside last week to find that all her chickens had suddenly died. “My video camera footage shows my chickens were perfectly fine before they started this burn, and as soon as they started the burn, my chickens slowed down and they died,” Amanda Breshears said..“If it can do this to chickens in one night, imagine what it’s going to do to us in 20 years,” she added.
