Trump's Ohio Visit Puts Spotlight on Rail-Safety Rules He Ended

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump is visiting the small Ohio town reeling from the toxic fallout of a Norfolk Southern Corp. train derailment hoping to capitalize politically on residents’ anger about the initial response by the Biden administration, but the trip is also highlighting the former president’s efforts to roll back rail regulations.

Trump is expected to meet on Wednesday with officials and residents affected by the Feb. 3 accident, which spewed hazardous chemicals into the air and ground of the community of about 4,700 people near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border, forcing an evacuation as authorities intentionally vented and burned tank cars to prevent an explosion.

Federal and state authorities and Norfolk Southern have pledged to to do whatever it takes to clean up the site and ensure residents’ safety, including setting up a health clinic and removing contaminated soil and water. But the accident spurred complaints that US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and other officials didn’t do enough to respond in the immediate aftermath of the accident.

The former president, who has been trying to fire up his 2024 campaign after a lackluster launch three months ago, says the mere announcement of his visit last week spurred federal action to help affected residents. In a social-media posting on Sunday, he wrote that “those incredible Patriots from East Palestine deserve it — should have happened long ago.”

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-ohio-visit-prompts-review-164559815.html

[MichMan]

1. Put a spotlight on a rule that had zero to do with the derailment....

The NTSB issued a statement that the rule change had nothing to do with the derailment since the issue wasn't related to the train's braking system and calls reports to the contrary misinformation.

In a rare series of posts on Twitter on Thursday evening, NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy issued "a message to the community" as well as "a plea to those spreading misinformation."

She added: "Nothing...nothing is more important than accuracy at a moment like this, which is why the NTSB is deliberate in our approach to investigations. Credibility is ESSENTIAL to our lifesaving mission. The NTSB process WORKS.

The NTSB chair addressed speculation that a rule on electronically controlled pneumatic (ECP) brakes -- if implemented -- would have prevented the train derailment, which she said was "FALSE."

"The ECP braking rule would've applied ONLY to HIGH HAZARD FLAMMABLE TRAINS. The train that derailed in East Palestine was a MIXED FREIGHT TRAIN containing only 3 placarded Class 3 flammable liquids cars," she tweeted. "This means even if the rule had gone into effect, this train wouldn't have had ECP brakes.

[2naSalit]

2. Probably also...

Because the rail company LIED about what was on the train. No placards doesn't mean that flammable chemicals weren't actually there. It's probably why DeWine thought it was a good idea to set fire to it like nobody could tell after the fact.