WASHINGTON (AP) — Norfolk Southern’s CEO apologized before Congress on Thursday and pledged millions of dollars to help East Palestine, Ohio, recover from the fiery, hazardous materials train derailment as senators investigate rail safety and the Biden administration’s response to the disaster.
“I want to begin today by expressing how deeply sorry I am for the impact this derailment has had on the residents of East Palestine and the surrounding communities,” CEO Alan Shaw told the Senate Environment and Public Works panel hearing.
Shaw added he was “determined to make this right” with a $20 million commitment so far to help the community recover. Norfolk Southern’s final financial responsibility is expected to run far beyond that after legal proceedings.
The company has announced several voluntary safety upgrades. Senators, however, have promised a pressing inquiry into the derailment, the company’s safety practices and the emergency response to the toppling of 38 rail cars, including 11 carrying hazardous materials. Federal regulators have also said Norfolk Southern must do more to improve safety.
No one was injured in the crash, but state and local officials decided to release and burn toxic vinyl chloride from five tanker cars, prompting the evacuation of half of the roughly 5,000 residents of East Palestine. Scenes of billowing smoke above the village, alongside outcry from residents that they are still suffering from illnesses, have turned high-level attention to railroad safety and how dangerous materials are transported.
Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., the chair of the committee opened the hearing by calling it “an opportunity to put ourselves in the shoes of those impacted by this disaster, examine the immediate response and ensure long-term accountability for the cleanup efforts.”
Carper joined the top Republican on the committee, Sen. Shelley Capito of West Virginia, in a call with reporters on Wednesday to emphasize they would work in bipartisan fashion “to deliver accountability to the communities and folks who have been impacted.”
The East Palestine disaster as well as a spate of other recent train derailments have sparked a show of bipartisanship in the Senate. The committee on Thursday will also hear from Ohio and Pennsylvania senators — Republican JD Vance and Democrats Sherrod Brown and Bob Casey — who are pushing new safety regulations called the Railway Safety Act of 2023.
“It shouldn’t take a train derailment for elected officials to put partisanship aside and work together for the people we serve – not corporations like Norfolk Southern,” Brown said in prepared remarks. “Lobbyists for the rail companies spent years fighting every effort to strengthen rules to make our trains and rail lines safer. Now Ohioans are paying the price.”
