Trump visits derailment site, blasts response
Plans to donate water, supplies to residents
EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — Former President Donald Trump came to show “love and support” Wednesday for a reeling village near the Ohio-pennsylvania border, almost three weeks after a catastrophic train derailment and the release of toxic chemicals left residents fearing for their health.
“To the people of East Palestine and to the nearby communities in Ohio and Pennsylvania, we have heard you loud and clear,” Trump, wearing his signature “Make America Great Again” hat, said during brief remarks at the local fire department. “You are not forgotten. We stand with you.”
Amid lingering concerns about the town’s drinking water, Trump said he brought thousands of bottles of water and cleaning supplies to donate to residents. And he joined in the growing bipartisan criticism of Norfolk Southern, calling on the railway company to give East Palestine “answers and results.”
Pennsylvania state lawmakers are set to hold a hearing about the derailment Thursday in Beaver County, but the company has said it doesn’t plan to attend. The National Transportation Safety Board is also expected to release initial findings Thursday of its investigation of the derailment.
“Norfolk Southern needs to fulfill its responsibilities and obligations,” Trump said.
Trump’s appearance came during a busy week in East Palestine, with Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg planning to visit Thursday and celebrity environmental advocate Erin Brockovich set to appear at a town hall Friday.
And it came as Trump ramps up his own comeback presidential bid. His visit Wednesday was only his third major public appearance since announcing his 2024 campaign in November.
While Trump and his allies used the appearance to highlight what they call the Biden administration’s failed response, it also put renewed attention on Trump’s record of easing railroad regulations when he was in the White House.
The Trump administration repealed an Obama-era rule mandating that trains carrying hazardous materials use electronically controlled pneumatic brakes, which allow them to brake faster.
The regulation would not have applied to the Norfolk Southern derailment since the train was not classified as “high-hazard.” And a Department of Transportation analysis conducted during the Trump administration underestimated future damages from derailments by $117 million, The Associated Press reports.
Local and state lawmakers who joined Trump on Wednesday included East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, R-ohio, and U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson, R-ohio.
East Palestine schools were closed Wednesday ahead of Trump’s visit.
By 1 p.m., a few hundred people lined the sidewalks of North Market Street , some wearing Trump 2024 campaign emblems.