East Palestine, railroad reach $22 million settlement

East Palestine, Ohio, has reached a $22 million settlement with the railroad that operated the train that derailed there in 2023, spilling toxic chemicals and making national headlines.

In a statement, the Ohio village said the settlement resolves all claims relating to the derailment, which caused no deaths or injuries but spilled 11 Norfolk Southern cars containing hazardous materials. The town acknowledges some $13.5 million the railroad has already paid out.

“As part of the settlement, Norfolk Southern and the Village have mutually agreed that the creation and operation of the proposed regional safety training center in the Village is not feasible and, as a result, work will not proceed with building the center,” the village said in a statement. “Norfolk Southern has agreed to transfer ownership of approximately 15 acres of land it acquired for the center to the Village for another productive use, to be determined by the Village in its sole discretion. Norfolk Southern remains committed to providing training for East Palestine’s first responders at other facilities in the region.”

Residents in proximity to the February 2023 derailment were briefly evacuated, and local officials conducted a controlled burn soon after that created a widely visible plume of toxic fumes.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) invoked the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, or Superfund law, which required Norfolk Southern to cover all costs. The EPA separately settled with Norfolk Southern for $310 million last May.

Later investigations determined that the direct cause of the derailment was an overheated bearing on the track outside East Palestine, which a so-called hot box detector on the tracks failed to detect until it was too late for the train to stop. Then-Ohio Sens. Sherrod Brown (D) and JD Vance (R) introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at tightening rail safety regulations in response to the revelations but it did not receive a Senate vote in the last Congress.

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