Legal Insurrection extensively covered the 2023 derailment of a Norfolk Southern train carrying hazardous chemicals in East Palestine, Ohio.

The incident led to the release and subsequent controlled burn of large quantities of vinyl chloride, a chemical known to be carcinogenic, resulting in a significant toxic plume over the community.

Immediately after the derailment, the Biden administration deployed federal agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Transportation, and the Department of Health and Human Services, to assist with emergency response and public health testing. The White House and EPA officials, including then-EPA Administrator Michael Regan, publicly assured residents that the local water supply was safe and that they were “not in danger”.

However, further reports from the region suggested that serious problems remained. At the time, then-Senator JD Vance (R-OH) checked out a creek in the impacted area . . . and said that if the tap water were safe to drink, perhaps EPA head Regan should be willing to drink it.