The Riverside Press-Enterprise
Railroad CEO ‘sorry,’ vows aid
But he avoids addressing tougher regulations and commitments
WASHINGTON >> Norfolk Southern’s CEO earnestly apologized before Congress on Thursday for last month’s fiery hazardous materials train derailment on the Ohio-pennsylvania border and pledged millions of dollars to help the local town recover. But he stopped short of fully endorsing tougher safety regulations or specific commitments to pay for long-term health and economic harm.
In a packed Senate hearing, CEO Alan Shaw said his railroad firmly supports the goal of improving rail safety, but he also defended his company’s record.
He was questioned closely by both Democrats and Republicans about specific commitments to pay for long-term health and economic harm — and about the decision making that led to the release and burn of toxic vinyl chloride from five tanker cars — as well as the company’s commitment to safety and helping the people of East Palestine, Ohio.
“I’m terribly sorry for the impact this derailment has had on the folks of that community,” Shaw told the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. “We’re going to be there for as long as it takes to help East Palestine thrive and recover.”
But the condolences and commitment of $20 million in aid so far hardly satisfied lawmakers or several East Palestine residents who traveled to Washington for the hearing.
“How do we trust that man with our health and the health of our children, when he won’t even answer the questions that we need answered,” said Jami Cozza, adding that her family continues to suffer from illnesses over a month after the derailment.
The company has announced several voluntary safety upgrades. Senators, however, are looking to act themselves as they investigate the derailment, the Biden administration’s response and the company’s safety practices after the toppling of 38 railcars, including 11 carrying hazardous materials.
Norfolk Southern is also under pressure from federal regulators. The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Railroad Administration both announced investigations this week of the East Palestine derailment and other accidents, including the death of a train conductor Tuesday.
Just Thursday, a Norfolk Southern train derailed in Alabama. Company and local officials said there was no threat to the public.
In the East Palestine crash, no one was injured but half of the roughly 5,000 local residents were evacuated. Scenes of billowing smoke above the town, alongside complaints from residents that they are still suffering from illnesses, have turned national attention to railroad safety and the ways dangerous materials are transported.
It’s all sparked a show of bipartisanship in the Senate. The committee on Thursday also heard from Ohio and Pennsylvania senators — Republican J.D. Vance and Democrats Sherrod Brown and Bob Casey — who are proposing new safety regulations under a Railway Safety Act of 2023.
Train derailments have been getting less common, but there were still more than 1,000 last year, according to data the Federal Railroad Administration. And as East Palestine shows, even a single train derailment involving hazardous materials can be disastrous.
Hazardous materials shipments account for 7% to 8% of the roughly 30 million shipments railroads deliver across the U.S. each year. But railroads often mix shipments and might have one or two cars of hazardous materials on almost any train. The Association of American Railroads trade group says 99.9% of hazardous materials shipments reach their destinations safely.
The Senate Commerce Committee also will hear from Norfolk Southern’s Shaw, as well as NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy, in another hearing later this month.
Shaw is backing proposals to tighten standards for tank cars that the railroads don’t own, expand hazardous materials training for first responders and establish standards for the trackside detectors railroads use to spot problems. The company has also said it is adding “approximately 200 hot bearing detectors” to its network. The NTSB has said a detector warned the crew operating the train that derailed Feb. 3 outside East Palestine, but they couldn’t stop the train before more than three dozen cars came off the tracks and caught fire.
Some lawmakers want to push beyond voluntary safety upgrades. The Railway Safety Act of 2023, which has gained support from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y., would require more hot bearing detectors to be installed, set limits on train length and make sure railroads notify states about the hazardous materials they are transporting.
Some Republicans have hesitated to support the proposal, resisting efforts to impose new regulations.
Vance, an Ohio senator who first won election last November, slammed those in his party who have dismissed his bill, saying they are ignoring a shift in the GOP to appeal to blue-collar voters.
“We have a choice: Are we for big business and big government, or are we for the people of East Palestine?” he said.
Republicans, at the same time, are more eager to delve into the emergency response to the East Palestine derailment. Thursday’s hearing also featured environmental protection officials from the federal, state and local levels.