What We Know About the Train Derailment in Ohio

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Around 9 p.m. on Feb. 3, a train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, a village of about 4,700 residents about 50 miles northwest of Pittsburgh.

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About 50 of the train’s 150 cars ran off the tracks on its route from Madison, Ill., to Conway, Pa.

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The train, operated by Norfolk Southern, had been carrying chemicals and combustible materials, with vinyl chloride, a toxic flammable gas, being of most concern to investigators.

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A huge fire erupted from the derailment, sending thick billowing smoke into the sky and over the town.

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Residents on both sides of the Ohio-Pennsylvania border were ordered to evacuate, as Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio raised alarms about a possible explosion.

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Local and federal officials started an investigation that involved the National Transportation Safety Board and the Environmental Protection Agency.

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The derailment has sparked concerns about air, soil and water pollution.

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On Feb. 10, the E.P.A. said that about 20 rail cars were reported to have been carrying hazardous materials

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Chemicals including vinyl chloride, butyl acrylate, ethylhexyl acrylate and ethylene glycol monobutyl ether were “known to have been and continue to be” released to the air,

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On Feb. 12, the E.P.A., after monitoring the air, said it had not detected contaminants at “levels of concern” in and around East Palestine, although residents may still smell odors

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also screened the air inside about 210 homes and said it had not detected vinyl chloride or hydrogen chloride, which can cause life-threatening respiratory issues.

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