Although Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, the Environmental Protection Agency, and local officials continue to assure Ohioans that recent air monitoring and water sample tests have shown no concerns with air quality or water quality in East Palestine’s municipal water supply, following the catastrophic train derailment on February 3rd, forestry workers have found that animals are dying at alarming rates.
A source told The Ohio Star that her husband, a wildlife biologist and consultant for the federal forestry, received hundreds of calls on both Sunday and Monday from colleagues who say forestry workers have found hundreds of dead animals in Ohio’s parks.
Several labs across the country have received specimens of whole minks, deer, elk, worms and livers of such animals and they are finding toxicities that are off the charts, she said.
“These highly toxic levels are the exact chemicals that were released from East Palestine. Wayne National Forest and Shawnee State Forest in Ohio, are downriver from East Palestine and are two parks where samples are from,” she told The Star.
50 train carriages, 10 of which were carrying hazardous materials, derailed in East Palestine on February 3rd. Hundreds of residents evacuated as a result of the controlled release of poisonous gasses that Norfolk Southern carried out on February 6th to stop an explosion.
Officials told East Palestine residents on February 8th that they could safely go home, despite the reports of hundreds of dead fish in the Ohio river near East Palestine and residents complaining of headaches and illness since the derailment.
There have been a growing number of reports of health concerns from residents following the derailment. Some residents this month say they have been diagnosed with bronchitis, lung issues, and rashes that doctors and nurses suspect are linked to the chemical exposure.
The source also told The Star that DeWine is allegedly blocking scientists from getting into state parks – but the scientists are finding ways to circumvent that.
“The governor and the railroad were blocking scientists from getting soil samples in East Palestine, but they were able to still grab some for testing. Likewise, the soils are highly contaminated,” she said.
The source claims that the Ohio governor only uses his own hand-picked scientists to “give him the results he wants.”
“It is heartbreaking to me that politicians like DeWine make an issue like this political. It should not be. He should be doing all he can to protect people, animals and the environment and not just cover his own behind,” she said.
She added that Governor DeWine has also invited a large group of forest rangers from the Ohio state parks to meet with him in Columbus this upcoming week.
DEVELOPING…
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Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star and The Star News Network. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected]
Photo “Elk” by Stephen Leonardi.
