On Thursday, Sen.
JD Vance of Ohio visited East Palestine and captured a video showing a polluted creek with dead wildlife. This was two weeks after a freight train transporting hazardous materials derailed in the area.
"There are dead worms and dead fish all throughout this water. This is disgusting. And the fact that we have not cleaned up the train crash, the fact that these chemicals are still seeping into the ground is an insult to the people who live in East Palestine."
Vance was seen using a stick to search the bed of the creek and seemed to demonstrate that "chemicals coming out of the ground."
Since the train derailment on February 3, a shiny film has been visible on the water, and thousands of dead fish and wildlife have been observed in East Palestine.
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources has reported that approximately 3,500 fish died and about seven miles of streams have been affected, a consequence of the contaminants that were released from the derailed train.
On the evening of February 3, a Norfolk Southern freight train transporting hazardous substances was derailed, expelling vinyl chloride and other compounds into the atmosphere and soil.
After three days of deliberation, it was determined that a controlled release of the substances in question should be executed to prevent an explosion, as one of the railroad cars had begun heating up.
With the chemical release, a large fire and a thick cloud of black smoke rose up in East Palestine with an estimated population of 4,700.
The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency conducted tests on five wells from Palestine's municipal water system, and the results showed that no detection of contaminants in raw water.
The EPA stated that "robust air-quality testing" had not detected any levels of health concern that can be attributed to the incident."
Residents of East Palestine are still reluctant to go back to their homes.
Nathan Izotic from East Palestine was telling Fox News, "What we're experiencing local fish in our creeks have died oily sheens and coloration in our water [the] constant smell of burning plastics and chemicals in the air issues with our dog vomiting, acting lethargic. It's scary stuff here.
Vance commented on the foul smell in the air. "Look, people say that the air is clean. I would like to believe that thats true. I also have been here for all of three hours, and it doesnt smell great to me. Especially, when we first arrived. This morning I was immediately struck by the smell of the air. Thankfully, the air problem is a much shorter-term problem than the water problem."
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