Norfolk Southern has agreed to pay $600 million to settle a class-action lawsuit arising from a disastrous train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio back in February 2023.
The Atlanta-based railroad operator confirmed the move in an April 9 press release. It stated that the settlement "is another promise kept by Norfolk Southern to make it right for the people of East Palestine and the surrounding communities."
"The agreement is designed to provide finality and flexibility for settlement class members. Individuals and businesses will be able to use compensation from the settlement in any manner they see fit to address potential adverse impacts from the derailment," Norfolk Southern explained.
"This could include healthcare needs and medical monitoring, property restoration and diminution, and compensation for any net business loss. In addition, individuals within 10 miles of the derailment may, at their discretion, choose to receive additional compensation for any past, current, or future personal injury from the derailment." (Related: Norfolk Southern trying to BUY OFF East Palestine residents for just $1,000 to silence them forever, and block all future cancer lawsuits resulting from vinyl chloride train catastrophe.)
According to the company, the arrangement will settle all class-action claims within a 20-mile radius of the derailment if approved by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. This includes claims from residents of East Palestine and people who evacuated after the disaster, along with various other larger towns. Compensations could start to arrive by the end of the year, subject to final court approval.
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Incidentally, the settlement does not contain or form any admission of liability, wrongdoing or fault on the part of Norfolk Southern. "More than three dozen" cars belonging to the company's freight train derailed, spilling hazardous chemicals that caught fire. Days later, officials burned the toxic vinyl chloride that was on five cars – sending thick, black plumes of smoke into the air and prompting the evacuation of some 1,500 to 2,000 residents.
Affected residents claim the $600 million settlement won't go far
More than a year after the disaster, residents still complain about respiratory issues and unexplained rashes and nosebleeds. Their biggest fear, however, is that they or their neighbors will develop cancer or other severe conditions because of the chemicals they were exposed to. They are also worried that the $600 million won't go far enough to cover future health requirements that could be enormous, but also won't amount to anything once it is distributed.
"It's not nowhere near my needs, let alone what the health effects are going to be five or 10 years down the road," said Eric Cozza, whose house was located just three blocks away from the disaster site. Forty-seven of his family members were residing within a mile of the derailment.
Cozza spent about $8,000 to pull out of town, pay his medical bills and replace his contaminated property. That amount, he lamented, drained what little savings he had.
Krissy Ferguson, another resident of East Palestine, called the settlement a "heart-wrenching day." She told the Associated Press: "I just feel like we've been victimized over and over and over again."
"We fought and we're still fighting, and contamination is still flowing down the creeks. People are still sick – and I think people that had the power to fight took an easy way out."
Other residents, Misti Allison among them, have many unanswered questions with regard to the settlement.
"What goes through my head is, after all the lawyers are paid and the legal fees are accounted for, how much funding will be provided for families? And is that going to be enough for any of these potential damages moving forward?"
Visit Disaster.news for more stories about the February 2023 East Palestine train derailment and its aftermath.
Listen to the Health Ranger Mike Adams discussing Norfolk Southern trying to buy the silence of East Palestine, Ohio residents for a measly $1,000 below.
This video is from the Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:
Norfolk Southern announces safety plan for its trains weeks after East Palestine, Ohio disaster.
Following East Palestine train derailment, environmentalists push EPA to ban vinyl chloride.
Ohio’s Chernobyl: Pollution from East Palestine still wreaking havoc in nearby Pennsylvania.
East Palestine toxic chemical spill could affect far-off cities and suburbs.
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