EPA boss says he would allow his children to drink and bathe in East Palestine water

The head of the US Environmental Protection Agency has said he would allow his own children to drink and bathe in public water near the site of a train derailment and chemical spill in Ohio, so long as it had been tested and deemed safe by officials.

EPA Administrator Michael Regan visited the site of the East Palestine derailment on Thursday, seeking to reassure skeptical residents that the water is fit for drinking and the air is safe to breathe. 

‘I’m asking they trust the government. I know that’s hard. We know there’s a lack of trust,’ Regan said. ‘We’re testing for everything that was on that train.’ 

Asked if he would allow his own children to drink the water, Regan said, as long as it has been tested: ‘Yes, as a father, I trust the science, I trust the methodology that this state is using, and as a parent, I would.’  

Earlier on Thursday, Senator JD Vance, an Ohio Republican, had challenged Regan to drink the water himself, saying: ‘If the EPA Administrator wants to stand here and tell people that the tap water is safe…they should be willing to drink it.’

EPA Administrator Michael Regan visited the site of the East Palestine derailment on Thursday, seeking to reassure skeptical residents that the water is fit for drinking and the air is safe

Senator JD Vance, an Ohio Republican, had challenged Regan to drink the water himself

The continuing cleanup of portions of a Norfolk Southern freight train that derailed February 3 in East Palestine, Ohio is seen in a file photo

The Ohio EPA said Wednesday that its latest tests show five wells supplying the village’s drinking water ‘showed no detection of contaminants associated with the derailment’.

However, at least 3,500 fish, mostly small ones such as minnows and darters, have been found dead along more than 7 miles of streams, according to the estimates from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

Vance said he did not trust the town’s drinking water supply, and advised residents to drink bottled water, which is being supplied by the government at no cost. 

Vance, who has repeatedly lashed out at the Biden administration in recent days over the derailment, which occurred on February 3, also claimed Wednesday that the EPA was not publicly disclosing the safety thresholds used to determine water safety.

‘If you talk to the EPA, if you talk to the CDC, they cannot tell you what a clean threshold is for the water,’ he said in an interview with Fox News.

However, the EPA publicly discloses that the enforceable maximum contaminant level for vinyl chloride, the main hazardous chemical involved in the spill, is two parts per billion in drinking water.

Spokespersons for the EPA and Ohio EPA, which conducted the water testing in East Palestine, did not immediately respond to requests for comment from DailyMail.com on Friday morning.

Vance also conducted his own crude water ‘testing’ in a video posted to Twitter, dragging a stick through a creek bed and stirring up an oily, rainbow sheen on the water’s surface. 

Since the derailment, residents have complained about headaches and irritated eyes and finding their cars and lawns covered in soot. 

The hazardous chemicals that spilled from the train killed thousands of fish, and residents have talked about finding dying or sick pets and wildlife.

A black plume rises over East Palestine, Ohio, as a result of a controlled detonation of a portion of the derailed Norfolk Southern trains, on February 6

‘I’m asking they trust the government. I know that’s hard. We know there’s a lack of trust,’ Regan said. ‘We’re testing for everything that was on that train.’

Environmental Protection Agency administrator Michael Regan answers questions at Sulphur Creek in East Palestine, Ohio on Thursday

Meanwhile, some residents of the town have said they are being asked to sign contracts they fear could prevent them from suing for damages over the chemical spill.

Katlyn Schwarzwaelder, who lives near the site of the Norfolk Southern derailment, told News Nation that a team from the company came to her property to do safety testing, but asked her to sign a document first. 

The officials said the document was a release to access the property, but Schwarzwaelder refused to sign after noticing the contact contained an indemnification clause.

The document said that the landowner agreed ‘hold harmless Unified Command’ from ‘any and all legal claims, personal injury or property damage.’ 

Norfolk Southern insisted to News Nation that the contract was a mistake, and that landowners had been given the wrong form be teams assigned to do air quality testing. 

‘Those incorrect forms were immediately pulled when the problem was discovered,’ the company insisted . ‘No one in the community has waived their legal rights against Norfolk Southern through this program or any interaction with us thus far.’ 

Residents are also frustrated by what they say is incomplete and vague information about the lasting effects from the disaster, which prompted evacuations.

‘I have three grandbabies,’ said Kathy Dyke, who came with hundreds of her neighbors to a public meeting Wednesday where representatives of railroad operator Norfolk Southern were conspicuously absent. ‘Are they going to grow up here in five years and have cancer?’

Regan said Thursday that anyone who is fearful of being in their home should seek testing from the government.

‘People have been unnerved. They´ve been asked to leave their homes,’ he said, adding that if he lived there, he would be willing to move his family back into the area as long as the testing shows it’s safe.

Those attending the previous night’s informational session had questions about health hazards and demanded more transparency from Norfolk Southern, which did not attend, citing concerns about its staff safety. 

Many who had waited in a long line snaking outside the high school gymnasium came away upset that they didn´t hear anything new. Some booed or laughed each time they heard the village mayor or state health director assure them that lingering odors aren´t dangerous.

‘They just danced around the questions a lot,’ said Danielle Deal, who lives a few miles from the derailment site. ‘Norfolk needed to be here.’

At least five lawsuits have been filed against the railroad, which announced this week that it is creating a $1 million fund to help the community while continuing to remove spilled contaminants from the ground and streams and monitoring air quality.

‘We are here and will stay here for as long as it takes to ensure your safety and to help East Palestine recover and thrive,’ Norfolk Southern President and CEO Alan Shaw said in a letter to the community.

Families who evacuated said they want assistance figuring out how to get the promised financial help. Beyond that, they want to know whether the railroad will be held responsible.

State and federal officials have promised to make sure Norfolk Southern not only pays for the cleanup but also reimburses residents.

The White House said teams from the federal health and emergency response and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will go to East Palestine.

No one was injured when about 50 cars derailed in a fiery, mangled mess on the outskirts of East Palestine on February 3

Precautions are being taken to ensure contaminants that reached the Ohio River don’t make it into drinking water, officials said

‘We understand the residents are concerned – as they should be — and they have questions. That´s all understandable,’ said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. ‘And we´re going to get to the bottom of this.’

No one was injured when about 50 cars derailed in a fiery, mangled mess on the outskirts of East Palestine on February 3. 

Officials seeking to avoid an uncontrolled blast evacuated the area and opted to release and burn toxic vinyl chloride from five rail cars, sending flames and black smoke billowing into the sky again.

Precautions are being taken to ensure contaminants that reached the Ohio River don’t make it into drinking water, officials said.

There have been anecdotal reports that pets or livestock have been sickened. 

No related animal deaths have been confirmed and the risk to livestock is low, Ohio officials said, but the state Agriculture Department is testing samples from a beef calf that died a week after the derailment.

The suspected cause of the derailment is a mechanical issue with a rail car axle. 

The National Transportation Safety Board said it has video appearing to show a wheel bearing overheating just beforehand. The NTSB expects to issue its preliminary report in about two weeks.