Almost half of investigators fell sick studying East Palestine train derailment

The Norfolk Southern 100-car train derailment that created a toxic chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio is being studied by 15 U.S. government investigators and now 7 of them have experiencing illness symptoms even after the feds said the water is safe to drink, while not actually drinking it themselves. [H/T The Daily Wire]

US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which includes members of the Epidemic Intelligence Service [an oxymoron if there ever was one] reported to CNN that almost half the crew felt sick while surveying homes of the town's residents near the contaminated areas.

Pete Buttigieg, our so called Transportation Secretary had visited East Palestine weeks after the disaster occurred and thought it was all clear, but now he says that he's concerned his chest milk might be contaminated and he doesn't know what to do about feeding his baby. 

“Symptoms resolved for most team members later the same afternoon, and everyone resumed work on survey data collection within 24 hours,” a CDC spokesperson told the network. “Impacted team members have not reported ongoing health effects.” No deaths of team members have been reported as of now.

Local and state authorities previously evacuated all residents within one mile of the February 3 derailment and started a controlled burn of substances on the vehicle. It's as if the contamination knows that a mile is a safe distance, like 6 feet is a safe distance to prevent Covid from killing you.

Five of those train cars emitted vinyl chloride in huge plumes of black smoke visible throughout eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania. Vinyl chloride is a human carcinogen that's used in the manufacturing of PVC. Residents in the town have since raised the alarm over health symptoms they experienced after the controlled burn in spite of the lies the government tried to pass off.

Before working from their hotels, some group members began experiencing sore throats, headaches, coughing, and nausea, basically the same symptoms reported by many of the town’s residents near the derailment site.

Federal officials did not disclose what caused investigators to experience such symptoms but again assured everyone that the water is safe to drink.

Two contractors from the Environmental Protection Agency out of 100 personnel working on the derailment also reported health symptoms after working in areas where the chemicals created strong odors.

The Ohio Department of Health published the results of surveys conducted at its East Palestine Health Assessment Clinic, plus door-to-door visits by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, four weeks after the chemical catastrophe permeated the town’s atmosphere.

The results showed more than half of the 168 After Chemical Exposure (ACE) community surveys reported headaches, anxiety, coughing, fatigue, and irritated skin after the derailment. However, the surveys did not indicate if the residents were exposed to harmful levels of chemicals or what caused their symptoms.

EPA officials, in conjunction with the Justice Department, announced a lawsuit on Friday against Norfolk Southern. They are seeking “penalties and injunctive relief for the unlawful discharge of pollutants, oil, and hazardous substances” under the Clean Water Act, [although they said the water is safe to drink] as well as “declaratory judgment on liability for past and future costs” related to the incident under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act. 

The complaint from the EPA and Justice Department said materials released from the train cars, such as vinyl chloride, ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, Ethylhexyl acrylate, butyl acrylate, isobutylene, and benzene residue, have been “associated variously” with impaired fetal development, organ damage, cancers, and other health conditions with a sufficiently high degree of exposure. 

Yet, state and federal officials have repeatedly claimed that the air and water supplies in East Palestine are safe for residents. In other words, the water is safe to drink. 

So why didn't the state and federal officials wet their whistles while in town?

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John Fetterman alleged to still be "sponsor" on Democratic bills

Although Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman remains in the hospital suffering from severe depression, which may or may not be accompanied by suicidal ideation, after also having suffered a life-threatening stroke and a wife who would like to have his job, it has been reported that he has been recognized as co-sponsor of a bill. 

The measure had been introduced after the horrendous East Palestine, Ohio, train derailment in which hazardous thousands of gallons of vinyl chloride was spilled creating horrendous conditions in the small town.

Although the bill was bipartisan, it's a safe bet that Fetterman didn't really take part in analyzing it because he isn't fit to remain in office due to the organicity he has been dealing with since his stroke and depression. We wish him well and a complete recovery but, like we have been doing with Joe Biden, we cannot pretend that all is well with Fetterman.

Members of both parties introduced the bill S.576 that was presented by Sen. Sherrod Brown. It is intended to enhance safety rules for trains that carry hazardous materials. 

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Biden defends not showing up as POTUS at East Palestine toxic spill

"Look, look, look"

So called US President Joe Biden defended his handler's decision to not offer emotional support to the residents of the town of East Palestine, Ohio, which voted heavily for President Trump in the last election and on Feb. 3rd suffered a major toxic chemical spill and fire caused by a train derailment. Instead, the commander in chief was ordered to go to Ukraine where his administration has shoveled billions in aid for their war effort. 

The cause of the derailment was determined to be an overheated wheel bearing on the 23rd car of the 149 rail cars, causing local officials to evacuate all residents within one mile of the accident and a controlled fire to burn off the vinyl chloride that was being transported in order to avoid an enormous explosion from occurring.

Biden mumbled the remarks during an interview with ABC News host David Muir that aired on Friday.

“So do you plan to travel there and have you talked with the mayor?” Muir asked the smirking Biden.

“I can’t recall whether, I don’t think I’ve talked to the mayor. I’ve talked to everyone else there,” Biden claimed. “Multiple times, talked to both the senators, both, both governors, I’ve talked to everyone that there is to talk to and we made it clear that everything is available.”

Both governors of Ohio? He probably was referring to Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, but is Joe ever clear about anything he says?

Muir then asked President Mumbles about comments the mayor of East Palestine made regarding his decision to not visit the American town, yet still found the time to visit Ukraine, a foreign country, which he said had "captured [my] heart."

“It’s been three weeks now since the toxic train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. As you know, the mayor says he saw you in Ukraine,” Muir said. “And he says it tells you he doesn’t care about us. They’re asking, ‘Is the president coming to Ohio?’”

“Do you have any plan to travel to Ohio?” Muir asked the cognitively impaired POTUS. “And have you talked with the mayor yet?”

“Let’s put this in perspective. Within two hours of that derailment, the EPA was in there, within two hours,” Biden mush-mouthed. “Every major agency in the United States government that’s had anything to do with rail and/or cleanup was there and is there.”

On Thursday, another train from Norfolk Southern Railway, the company operating the train which derailed in Ohio, went off the tracks in southeast Michigan. Perhaps it's time for Norfolk Southern to be investigated so we can all stop making this a political issue.

It's true that the EPA and FEMA arrived on scene as they were expected to do, and it's also true that the town does not meet the definition of "major disaster" under the 1998 Stafford Act, which defines one as any natural catastrophe in the country that causes damage of such severity that the president determines it is beyond the combined capabilities of state and local governments to respond.

The train derailment in East Palestine also did not cause any property damage, which is part of the criteria for FEMA disaster relief.

Although the aftermath of the train derailment “certainly has been a disaster,” Gov. DeWine said Feb. 17, it does not meet this legal definition.

It simply meets the moral standards that would have a nation's leader put our money where his mumbling mouth is.

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President "I'm Not Kidding" will not visit East Palestine after train disaster: "Someone told me I can't go"

"Look folks, no lips"

President, they say, Joe Biden, told "reporters" that he has been told by someone whose name he forgot that he isn't going to visit East Palestine, Ohio, where a train derailment created a toxic disaster.

"I can see why they won't let me go to Palestine," Joe began. "Those Palestinians shoot people they don't like and as an American who said that I used to go to a synagogue after church on Sundays as a kid with my mom, they might think I support Israel. But look at my record, man."

One reporter explained to President Biden that this wasn't the same Palestine, and in fact, it's pronounced 'Palesteen.'

The derailment happened on February 3rd in the small Ohio Trump-loving town comprised of mostly White Republicans, which helps explain why the administration has refused to send aid and assistance before the public outcry pressured them to do so.

The cause of the Norfolk Southern derailment which resulted in a toxic clusterfrack, was an overheated wheel bearing on the 23rd car of the 149 car choo-choo, as Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg refers to freight trains. 

The result was a vinyl chloride spill, a massive explosion, a subsequent controlled fire and safe drinking water, the EPA assured the residents. When Ohio Rep. J.D. Vance offered a glass of water to the EPA representative he declined stating he wasn't thirsty at the moment.

Vinyl chloride is a known carcinogen used in the manufacturing of PVC. It was emitted from only 5 of the 149 cars, which is a significantly small percentage of the cars so there is no reason to worry, especially for residents in Canada. Interestingly however, the black billowing smoke was visible in much of eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania.

"Frankly, I don't see the problem," President Biden said. "I'm not kidding."


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Pothole Pete won't tell us why it took 3 weeks to show up at East Palestine

When you don't know the name of the U.S. Transportation Secretary, that is the definition of a good one. It's not unlike a good baseball umpire or NFL referee--they do such a good job, you don't get to see them before a problem is solved, because they solve the problems before they get out of hand.

Then there's Pete Buttigieg.

As most people are aware, on February 3rd of this month, a catastrophic train derailment led to a vinyl chloride spill and fire in the small Ohio town named East Palestine [pronounced 'Palesteen'. A containment fire was started to handle the spill but it did more harm than good. But the EPA and a few Democrats said the water was safe to drink, but didn't bother to test their 'science' by taking a drink themselves. 

Meanwhile, the Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg, was nowhere to be found in the mostly White, Republican town in Ohio.

The public was livid that Pete didn't bother to come to assure the townsfolk, assess the damage and do an overview of the situation, and they said so on social media. It finally got Buttigieg's attention and he thought he better get his butt to the site.

However, when on Thursday he was asked by the press why it took him one day shy of three weeks to get to East Palestine, he refused to explain. He ignored press inquiries and his own press secretary also refused to answer the questions in front of the cameras.

Turning Point USA reporter Savanah Hernandez posted footage of Buttigieg’s visit to East Palestine, asking the useless Transportation Secretary why it took him nearly three weeks to visit the area.

“Why did it take you an entire two and a half weeks to actually get here to respond to East Palestine? Will you apologize to the residents of this city for the slow response,” she asked as the incompetent Buttigieg ignored her, walking away, Biden style. 

A woman then approached Hernandez, identifying herself as Buttigieg’s press secretary.

“I don’t want to be on camera, please,” she said, offering to answer questions on the condition that cameras were off. After all, the public doesn't have the right to know what their government is doing.

Hernandez asked again why it took the Alfred E. Neuman lookalike so long to respond to the disaster, but his press secretary refused to answer because of the presence of cameras and the fear of accountability to the people they are sworn to serve.

“I’m sorry. I don’t want to do this on camera,” she said as other reporters jumped in.

“I’m happy to talk to you guys off camera,” she said as Hernandez asked her a question again.

“I’m happy to have a conversation with you. I do not want to be on camera,” the press secretary responded. A man then told members of the press to put the cameras away, to which Hernandez responded it was a public area, and they were, therefore, allowed to have them rolling. 

Imagine, a so called press secretary censoring the press. Anyway, Ms. Hernandez tweeted:

I asked Sec. Buttigieg why it took him almost 3 weeks to come and speak to residents of East Palestine.

His press Secretary then told me I was aggressive for trying to ask questions on camera: pic.twitter.com/bOB52DIq0O

— Savanah Hernandez (@sav_says_) February 23, 2023

It turns out that Buttigieg's visit to East Palestine came a few days after he said he would visit when "the time is right." By that he meant whenever he was pressured into visiting the disaster. But not so coincidentally, it appears, his visit came merely one day after former President Donald Trump visited, handing out truckloads of water and buying McDonald's for first responders.

“We’re like a third-world nation, and this is an example of it, the breakdown. Our whole country is breaking down,” Trump said during his visit with East Palestine residents, adding that Buttigieg “should have been here a long time ago.”

I disagree with Trump: Buttigieg should have been gone, a long time ago. Or better yet, he should have never gotten the job in the first place because it was only because he is gay and married to a guy, that the Biden administration appointed him. He was a failure as the Mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and is a failure as Transportation Secretary.

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BREAKING: NTSB announces cause of East Palestine train derailment

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has completed its preliminary report as to what caused the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. 

The train was carrying chemicals that caused a toxic spill and created an ecological disaster that has until now, been totally ignored by the federal government and national media. For example, it took 3 weeks and a lot of public pressure to get Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to leave his husband and travel to Ohio.

Chickens and fish have died, people have sore throats and rashes, while government officials are claiming that it's okay to drink the water. Rep. J.D. Vance (R-OH) dared them to drink it themselves, but so far they've passed on the offer. Now the EPA has changed their tune and warn residents to avoid well water.

The cause of the derailment, according to the  NTSB on Thursday, was an overheated wheel bearing. And while we can't directly blame Pete Buttigieg for the disaster [who blames former President Donald Trump], we can at least point out how little involvement he was willing to take as Transportation Secretary, and his arrogant avoidance of answering questions by media that's willing to challenge him over his not handling the situation.

“NTSB investigators have identified and examined the rail car that initiated the derailment. Surveillance video from a residence showed what appears to be a wheel bearing in the final stage of overheat failure moments before the derailment,” investigators said.

“The wheelset from the suspected railcar has been collected as evidence for metallurgical examination. The suspected overheated wheel bearing has been collected and will be examined by engineers from the NTSB Materials Laboratory in Washington, D.C.”

The wheel bearing suspected of overheating rose from a temperature of “38°F above ambient temperature” to a temperature of “103°F above ambient” as it passed three monitors designed to alert crews of such conditions.

The train's crew was notified by an automated system to stop the locomotive and inspect the car with the overheated bearing. It did so but it was too late as the train left the tracks before it could be stopped and the vinyl chloride spilled all over the area.

“After the train stopped, the crew observed fire and smoke and notified the Cleveland East dispatcher of a possible derailment,” the NTSB said. “Responders arrived at the derailment site and began response efforts.”

Efforts to put out fires failed over the following two days, and a decision was made to start a controlled burn of the vinyl chloride, causing a toxic mushroom cloud and an ill wind that did nobody any good.

“On February 5, responders mitigated the fire, but five derailed DOT-105 specification tank cars … carrying 115,580 gallons of vinyl chloride continued to concern authorities because the temperature inside one tank car was still rising,” the report stated.

“This increase in temperature suggested that the vinyl chloride was undergoing a polymerization reaction, which could pose an explosion hazard,” the NTSB stated. “Responders scheduled a controlled venting of the five vinyl chloride tank cars to release and burn the vinyl chloride, expanded the evacuation zone to a 1-mile by 2-mile area, and dug ditches to contain released vinyl chloride liquid while it vaporized and burned.”

And on February 23, fully twenty days after the tragedy, Pete Buttigieg, a possible Democratic presidential hopeful for the future, finally got off his butt and visited the area.

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Buttigieg goes into a 'time out' in middle of East Palestine disaster: asks if he can dox a reporter via photo

Yes we can't

Possibly as incompetent as Kamala Hahahaharris, the so called Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, reportedly snapped a photo of a journalist from the Daily Caller News Foundation after he refused to answer her questions about the East Palestine, Ohio train disaster caused by a derailment of a train while transporting dangerous chemicals. 

She simply wanted to know why he was "taking some personal time" in the midst of this clusterfrack and he responded by seemingly trying to dox her.

The key word here is "transporting," as in "transportation." You know, the thing that Buttigieg is the Secretary of.

The Daily Caller News Foundation’s Jennie Taer caught up to Buttigieg, whose main qualifications for the job is that he's gay and he is married to another man who is also gay. 

She asked him a series of questions about the train derailment and subsequent chemical fires — primarily what he might have to say to local residents who have concerns about the safety and quality of the air and water in their homes. 

Before this Washington, D.C. meeting, Buttigieg has tried to dismiss the disaster by pointing out the fact that there are thousands of derailments every year in the U.S., a fact that adds to his lack of competency, but he's evidently too narcissistic to realize this point.

“I asked Secretary Buttigieg about the crisis in East Palestine and I guess he didn’t like that so he took a pic of me. I’m just doing my job, sir,” Taer tweeted.

She also shared a video of the encounter:

I asked Secretary Buttigieg about the crisis in East Palestine and I guess he didn’t like that so he took a pic of me. I'm just doing my job, sir. @DailyCaller pic.twitter.com/HjKNgF25FJ

“Hi, how are you, Jennie Taer at The Daily Caller News Foundation,” she said as she approached the former South Bend, Indiana, mayor who couldn't even get the potholes filled in his town. “What do you have to say to the folks in Ohio — East Palestine — who are suffering right now?”

“Well, I’d refer you to about a dozen interviews I’ve given today,” Buttigieg replied as a way of not answering her question. Then he added, “And if you’d like to arrange a conversation you should reach out to our press office but I’m not going to have that conversation with you just walking on the street.”

[This may be due to Mayor Pete's inability to walk and talk at the same time.]

“You don’t have a message for them?” Taer pressed.

“I do, and I’ve shared it with the press many times today and I’d refer you to those comments,” he said.

“Would you mind sharing it with us?” she pressed.

“No, I’m going to refer you to the comments that I made to the press because right now I’m taking some personal time and I’m walking down the street,” Buttigieg continued to stonewall her because he's a government employee paid by the taxpayers of this country and doesn't have to tell them what he's doing just because he's getting paid by us.

Taer persisted, asking the Transportation Secretary whether he planned to make a visit to East Palestine – and he said that he did intend to go, but then refused to give specifics when she asked when he might be making that trip.

“I’ll share that when I’m ready,” the gay Transportation Secretary said, and then stopped and turned to face her. “Can I get a photo of you?” he asked.

Joe Concha, a Fox News commentator and Media and Politics columnist for The Hill, suggested that the mainstream press’ failure to address the situation was part of the problem.

“This is how elitists who are made uncomfortable act out. Amazing how few members of the press are commenting on this,” he said.

If Buttigieg was a straight White male, he would still be in South Bend, Indiana watching the potholes grow.

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