Feb. 16 (UPI) — President Joe Biden is traveling Friday afternoon to Ohio where he will visit the site of last year’s massive train derailment in the small village of East Palestine in the northeastern part of the state.
Biden will receive an operational update on recovery efforts once on the ground in East Palestine, where a Norfolk Southern freight train derailed on Feb. 3, 2023, spilling thousands of gallons of hazardous chemicals and igniting a multiday fire.
The spill also contaminated nearby drinking water.
Air Force One will deposit Biden in Pittsburgh at 2:25 p.m. EST where he will then travel by ground to East Palestine, arriving at 4:30 p.m. EST.
Biden will also meet with residents directly affected by the disaster, the White House confirmed earlier in the month.
The derailment forced hundreds of residents to evacuate their homes in the village with a population of 4,700.
The train was carrying 115,580 gallons of vinyl chloride, a colorless hazardous gas.
A preliminary report issued by the National Transportation Safety Board found the train failed to stop after an audible alarm activated because of an overheated wheel bearing.
“The president will deliver remarks on how the administration is holding Norfolk Southern accountable for the derailment and is working with state and local officials to support the community as it moves forward,” the White House said in a statement accompanying Biden’s daily schedule.
“The president will discuss his commitment to ensuring the people of East Palestine are not defined by this single event, and that his administration is delivering on the needs of affected families, businesses, and residents.”
Biden’s visit comes at the invitation of East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway, according to White House Press Secretary Katherine Jean-Pierre.
Conaway previously criticized the president for not coming to the disaster site last year shortly after the derailment.
The issue quickly escalated into a political football with former president Donald Trump visiting the disaster site on Feb. 22, 2023. Trump at the time criticized Biden’s failure to appear.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg arrived a day later to observe the toxic derailment, delivering a briefing on the disaster from the NTSB.
