EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — Tracy Hagar tries not to think about the derailment anymore. East Palestine has returned to some semblance of normalcy, with cleanup crews largely confined to the derailment site now.

She doesn't obsessively scan social media for updates like she once did, and the community events she attended to get information about progress on chemical testing and the cleanup stopped. But still, the presence of the disaster lingers over everyday life.

"Sometimes, I still can't believe it happened," she said. "But here we are. It's just a whole other way of living."

On Feb. 3, 2023, part of a Norfolk Southern freight train carrying hazardous chemicals, including the known carcinogen vinyl chloride, derailed and spewed its toxic cargo into the air, soil, water and groundwater.

A fire burned for days, and about 2,000 people were evacuated. Fearing a catastrophic uncontrolled explosion, Norfolk Southern officials made the call for a controlled detonation of five railcars that a federal investigation later determined as unnecessary.

Now, two years later, the once-close-knit town of just under 5,000 people has been left to contend with unknown health risks and long-term environmental effects. While Norfolk Southern and government officials have promised relief and support, many residents remain frustrated by the lack of transparency, delayed compensation and ongoing questions about the community's safety.

Although a federal emergency was never declared despite residents' pleas, they may have the chance to push for more assistance and answers when Vice President JD Vance visits East Palestine on Monday to mark the second anniversary. He will be joined by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, Ohio Republican U.S. Sens. Bernie Moreno and Jon Husted, and U.S. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin.

Sometimes, the fight can "feel so big" for a place of village of just under 5,000 people, Hagar said. She still wonders, "Who will listen to us?"

A ticket out

Since the accident, Hagar has stopped hiking the trails near her home because she couldn't help but scan creeks for strange sheens. Occasionally, she still catches that familiar chemical smell, triggering memories of the chaotic days immediately after the derailment.

At work as an office manager for a garage in Beaver Falls, people still ask her about what happened, particularly about whether she has received any money from the historic settlement reached with the railroad.

Even the sound of passing trains, once just background noise, seems impossibly loud.

"I just can't get away from it," she said. "Even with the TV on just last night, I said, 'I can still hear that train outside.' I just never thought I'd hear it like that."

Hagar has spent more than a year trying to figure out an exit plan for her husband and two boys, 13 and 11. With options to move their mobile home to another property proving to be limited, they've made improvements to their home, including replacing the roof, power washing and installing new gutters, to make staying more bearable.

"If we wanted to sell it, it would have been better that we replaced everything anyway," she said.

For now, Hagar clings to the hope that the money from the settlement with the railroad will be their ticket out. Norfolk Southern agreed to a $600 million payout for those within 20 miles of the derailment. The process has been delayed by appeals for higher payouts and transparency around independent testing conducted during the negotiation process. Property claims are on hold while personal injury payments for residents who live within 10 miles of the derailment site move forward.

Over 97% of East Palestine residents accepted the personal injury payouts, with 55,000 claims filed overall. Ms. Hagar was quoted $25,000 for her personal injury claim and $60,000 for the property claim.

"If we got that full amount, that would solidify us moving for sure," she said.

Alongside the $600 million settlement, the U.S. Department of Justice reached a separate $310 million agreement with Norfolk Southern. Pending a judge's approval, the railroad will pay $25 million for a 20-year community health program, $15 million for groundwater and surface water monitoring, and a $15 million civil penalty.

But the Government Accountability Project, a national whistleblower organization, argues that the deal falls short. A recent report challenges the DOJ's claim that the deal is "fair and reasonable," asserting it relies on flawed data from Norfolk Southern's own contractors.

The Government Accountability Project alleges that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency manipulated data to obscure chemical detection and used remediation techniques that have further exposed residents to toxins during the cleanup.

The organization has also found that the EPA delayed deploying a plane capable of real-time air monitoring for five days after the derailment, an issue now under investigation by the EPA's inspector general. In a formal letter, the EPA responded to the organization's claims, defending its testing protocols and response.

Lesley Pacey, senior environmental officer for the Government Accountability Project, is calling for stronger punitive actions, including criminal charges against Norfolk Southern and further scrutiny of the EPA.

"There's no safeguards being put in place," she said. "We're still having contamination, and they're not really talking about it or even posting regularly to the EPA's website."

Information once readily available from the agency's website through monthly operational updates ceased in August, and its newsletters stopped getting posted online in November.

In a statement to the Post-Gazette, the EPA said it's continuing to update residents via newsletters, village meetings and by appointment at its welcome center in downtown East Palestine.

So far, the agency said it has removed 219,000 tons of contaminated soil, collected 115 million air monitoring data points and cleaned 83 homes. Sediment cleanup continues but has slowed due to cold weather, the statement said.

While the federal agreement is the only settlement so far that includes provisions for long-term monitoring, Pacey argues that the $25 million health fund is inadequate to cover residents' medical needs over a 20-year period. She said she believes Norfolk Southern should also fully fund relocation for people who feel unsafe.

"We're seeing a resurgence of health issues among residents," she said. "New reports of seizures among young people. Cardiac problems that put people in the hospital. I don't think anything short of medical care and relocation will make people ever feel like they've been heard."

For Linda Murphy, deciding whether to stay isn't easy, even with her doubts about the community's safety. She still trucks in filtered water for her two horses and drinks bottled water herself.

"I don't have confidence in what the EPA has done with their testing, the more you find out about how they go about it," she said. "If you let the criminals investigate the crime scene, how do you think it's going to turn out?"

She and her husband, Russell, have a 40-acre property two miles from derailment site that was to be their forever home, one they built from the ground up for the past 25 years.

"To have that sense of accomplishment and pride just be assaulted, it's heartbreaking, it's devastating," she said.

They have searched all over the country for a comparable property, from Kentucky to Tennessee to West Virginia. Nothing was feasible, or remotely affordable, given that they've already paid off their mortgage.

"You can't just go on Zillow and find something like this," Ms. Murphy said. "I don't want to look for another job. I don't want to do all this stuff. I also don't want to make a decision out of fear."

Beyond the testing and cleanup, skepticism in the community remains high regarding Norfolk Southern's role in the crisis and its financial contributions.

The company now has a permanent footprint in East Palestine, with a new field office in the center of town, and it has committed to other major projects, including a $25 million revamp to the village park. But locals like Murphy question who truly benefits from these initiatives.

With the village just reaching a $22 million settlement to settle all its claims with Norfolk Southern, Murphy feels the money has too much sway.

"Our village has turned their backs on the individuals who do not go along with the narrative of, 'We just want to build back East Palestine,'" she said. "Don't forget about the people that make up the village, even the ones who aren't happy with how this has turned out and are still asking questions."

But the mayor of East Palestine, Trent Conaway, says he feels optimistic about the town's future.

During a press conference Friday, he addressed several key concerns, including the cancellation of a proposed regional training center for first responders as part of its settlement with Norfolk Southern. While the project initially promised economic growth and a way to improve responses to future rail disasters, he said it was ultimately deemed an "unsustainable burden" for the small village.

He said it was up village council members to decide what to do with the 15-acre plot where the center was going to be built and the $22 million the village will receive from Norfolk Southern.

With residents saying they had been left in the dark about the settlement, the mayor conceded that local leaders could do more to communicate with them and that he is open to hosting more town halls.

"It seems like they turn into a disaster," he said of previous town halls. "I understand there's people frustrated. I've been frustrated."

But overall, he said he was hopeful that the village would find more direction in the next few years, particularly concerning its economic development and implementing a "long-term health plan." He sees the settlement as an opportunity to address ongoing needs and secure a better future for East Palestine.

"I hope people see that we do care and that we aren't just sitting on our hands," he said. "We want to ensure that the community is not defined by the derailment. There's definitely a stigma, and we want to show our resilience by the ability to rebuild."

A 'broken house'

While some residents feel trapped, unable to leave due to financial constraints, others have managed to relocate in search of safer environments for their families.

Jami Wallace was among those who left. She and her husband had been renting a home in East Palestine with their toddler, but after the derailment, they moved about 20 miles away to East Liverpool, Ohio.

Wallace had returned to her hometown as an adult, hoping to give her daughter a "small-town America" upbringing. But the disaster forced her family to leave not just their home, but most of their belongings. She feared many items could be contaminated, and the fumes were so overpowering that she could barely stay in the house long enough to pack.

Her daughter still misses the toys she had to leave behind.

"She talks about her 'broken house,'" Ms. Wallace said. "There were stuffed animals she had since she was a newborn, and she tells people they're in her broken house and she can't go get them."

But Wallace feels like one of the lucky ones who got out early on. She knows many people stuck with homes that have sat on the market for months with no interested buyers, including her parents.

"They're sick, my niece that lives with them is sick, so they want out," she said. "But the house has been in my stepdad's family for generations. My heart breaks for him."

The town that Wallace grew up in now feels unfamiliar in some ways, with the community fractured between those wanting to move on and others fighting for more answers.

"It's not like what used to be where you go in the grocery store and you talk to everybody," she said. "I guess part of it is never knowing who's on which side, which is disgusting to even have to say, like there's sides. But that's very much how it feels right now."

With some residents continuing to speak out about the derailment's effects, the crisis has spurred a national, bipartisan fight for rail safety reforms. The EPA has also begun a formal review of the risks associated with vinyl chloride, a cancer-causing chemical the derailed train was carrying.

Wallace feels compelled to push for change. She now works alongside Dr. Beatrice Golomb at the University of California, San Diego, serving as a community liaison for a study on chemical exposure in East Palestine. She recruits participants, collaborates with health care providers and advocates for research to document long-term health effects, hoping to help other communities affected by similar disasters in the future.

"I feel like it would be the only sense of peace I could have with what happened," she said. "If we can save another community, if we can learn more about chemical exposures, at least it was for a reason."

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