Class Action Lawsuit against Norfolk Southern Escalating After Train Derailment

Lawsuits are being filed for damages arising from released toxic chemicals after the Norfolk Southern (NS) train derailed between eastern Ohio and Pennsylvania, forcing thousands of locals to evacuate. On Wednesday, the plaintiffs’ law firm Morgan & Morgan filed a class-action suit in federal court in Ohio on behalf of two women living in East Palestine, near the derailment that happened on Feb. 5, 2023.

Following the derailment, NS said 20 of the more than 100 cars on the train were classified as carrying hazardous materials. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said 11 pressure tank cars carrying hazardous materials derailed, five of which were carrying vinyl chloride. At a Feb. 5 news conference, NTSB said a mechanical problem with a railcar axle caused the derailment. NTSB member Michael Graham said the three-member train crew received a detector alert about the mechanical defect “shortly before the derailment,” but said the Board was still working to determine which railcar experienced the problem. He said investigators identified the exact “point of derailment,” but did not disclose the location, according to Railwayage.com.

“Norfolk Southern discharged more cancer-causing Vinyl Chloride into the environment in the course of a week than all industrial emitters combined did in the course of a year,” the suit alleges, claiming that the company chose to burn the vinyl chloride, turning it into a highly toxic gas, rather than disposing of it safely.

“From chemicals that cause nausea and vomiting to a substance responsible for the majority of chemical warfare deaths during World War I, the people of East Palestine and the surrounding communities are facing an unprecedented array of threats to their health,” Morgan & Morgan attorneys said in a statement.

The suit claims that “thousands of residents” in rural eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania could have been exposed to the toxins, According to CBS. At least six other lawsuits have been filed against the NS’s negligence and seeking payment for property damage, and economic loss due to the exposure to hazardous chemicals. According to CBS News Detroit, State, and local authorities are investigating the incident.

NS was in the news again Thursday when one of its trains derailed in Van Buren Township, Michigan. Roughly 30 cars came off the track, including one containing liquid chlorine, but local public safety officials said on Facebook that there is no evidence of a chemical spill. State and local authorities are investigating, according to CBS News Detroit.

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