The chair of the National Transportation Safety Board lambasted Atlanta-based Norfolk Southern on Tuesday and accused the railroad of interfering with the agency’s investigation of the derailment of its train carrying hazardous materials in Ohio last year.
NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy called the derailment in East Palestine and subsequent fiery hazardous materials release “devastating for an entire community.” At the hearing in the town where the train derailed the night of Feb. 3, 2023, she criticized Norfolk Southern’s actions during the wreck investigation, at one point describing a meeting that was marked by a “threat.”
“We can’t change the past. What we can do, based on facts, is work to ensure this never happens again,” she said.
Homendy said Norfolk Southern numerous times delayed or failed to provide critical investigative information to NTSB investigators, actions she described as “unconscionable.” She revealed that she twice called Norfolk Southern, stating that she would issue a subpoena to get information if it weren’t provided to the NTSB.
At the close of the hearing she said she was “so deeply troubled with how Norfolk Southern approached this investigation.”
Norfolk Southern took issue with the criticism Tuesday evening, saying in a written response: “At all times, Norfolk Southern cooperated fully and ethically with the investigation, with full transparency.”
“Our communications with NTSB staff and Board Members were always motivated by a desire to ensure they had all the relevant information for their independent evaluation and by a shared commitment to advance rail safety,” the railroad’s statement said.
But Homendy called Norfolk Southern’s “abuse” of NTSB’s investigative process “unprecedented and reprehensible.” She recounted a meeting with Norfolk Southern that “ended with what everyone from the NTSB knew, heard in the room, was a threat.”
“We are the gold standard when it comes to accident investigation around the world. I will not allow — will not allow — any entity to impugn that reputation or malign the reputation of our investigative staff,” Homendy said. She said there would be an internal evaluation of NTSB’s policies to ensure it is “adequately protected from undue interference with the federal investigation.”
The investigation of the East Palestine crash identified a number of safety issues, with the NTSB making dozens of safety recommendations aimed at preventing future disasters. The NTSB has no regulatory or enforcement authority, but makes recommendations to other government agencies, companies and industry to improve safety.
The derailment itself was caused by a defective wheel bearing, but the NTSB found other factors contributed to the release of hazardous materials, potentially endangering the public and emergency responders. Those factors included problems with a tank car and a controlled burn decision after the wreck, a delay in telling emergency responders what the train was carrying, and insufficient training of volunteer firefighters.
Norfolk Southern, in its written response said it has already moved to improve safety. “We will move quickly to compare the NTSB’s recommendations to our current protocols and will implement those that advance our safety culture,” it said.
But the railroad and the agency are at odds over one of the most consequential actions of the disaster: the railroad’s recommendation that toxic vinyl chloride in some of the rail cars undergo a controlled burn.
The NTSB criticized Norfolk Southern for recommending the controlled burn and for not relaying dissenting opinions to the incident commander.
Vinyl chloride manufacturer OxyVinyls told Norfolk Southern that there was not a chemical reaction in the cars posing risk of an explosion, but key officials on the Unified Command of officials led by the East Palestine fire chief were not told that before they decided to do a “vent and burn” operation, according to remarks during hearings.
The toxic chemical burn caused a large and noxious black smoke plume over the town, and necessitated the evacuation of thousands of residents. It has also caused lasting fears among some in the area about the potential for long-term health effects. Exposure to vinyl chloride, which is used to make PVC pipes, is associated with an increased risk of cancer.
Norfolk Southern and its contractors continued to assert a “vent and burn” operation was necessary, “even though available evidence should have led them to reevaluate their initial conclusions,” according to NTSB investigator Paul Stancil. He told NTSB members that there was “a misunderstanding or confusion” between OxyVinyls’ support team and Norfolk Southern’s expert contractors.
“The decision-making process was very much flawed,” said NTSB member Thomas Chapman during the hearing. “I think it’s really unfortunate.”
Norfolk Southern on Tuesday said along with its expert contractors, its “only motivation in recommending the vent and burn to the Unified Command was the health and safety of the community and first responders.”
The railroad said several factors “indicated the strong possibility of a catastrophic, uncontrolled explosion.” Norfolk Southern also said it “received conflicting information from OxyVinyls’ personnel” and that OxyVinyls could have made its views known to decision makers.
During Tuesday’s hearing, Homendy said: “I’ll just note how insulting it is that Norfolk Southern just this afternoon released a statement that said that we mischaracterized their vent-and-burn decision-making process.”
The NTSB recommended more comprehensive guidance from the Federal Railroad Administration on when vent-and-burn operations should be done.
It also recommended the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration add more hazardous materials to its classification of “high-hazard flammable trains” that are subject to more stringent restrictions on speed, routing, braking and other standards. The Norfolk Southern train that derailed in East Palestine did not meet the definition of a high-hazard flammable train, even though the wreck released hazardous materials and resulted in the evacuation of about 2,000 residents, according to the Federal Railroad Administration.
Others, including U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, renewed calls for stronger rail safety regulations.
Norfolk Southern said since the East Palestine derailment, it has installed 187 more hot bearing detectors, 17 acoustic bearing detectors and three digital train inspection portals.
At the hearing, NTSB investigators presented their findings and the board voted on the findings and recommendations. The final report on the investigation will be published in several weeks.
The NTSB said the delay in transmitting documentation of what the train was carrying last year in East Palestine increased exposure of emergency responders and the public, with firefighters closer to the hazardous fire than recommended — until they got the information and were instructed to evacuate the area.
The U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration this week finalized a rule requiring railroads to provide first responders with information about rail hazmat shipments as soon as they are aware of an accident or incident involving hazardous materials. Norfolk Southern said since the East Palestine derailment, it has deployed real-time access to train consists with information on rail cars.
Among the concerns is the safety of volunteer firefighters who may be as young as 18 years old, according to the NTSB.
An NTSB member who went to East Palestine, a town of about 4,700, after the derailment said he was greeted there by a young volunteer firefighter who “told us about his experiences that night, receiving the call, quickly responding with his friends and fellow volunteer firefighters to protect their community — and the dangers they faced on the scene.”
“Later, the firefighter’s mother surprised us by bringing the NTSB investigative team a crock pot full of homemade sloppy joes, chips and water for lunch,” said NTSB member Michael Graham. “I’ll never forget that.”
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