Ohio train derailment: JD Vance challenges EPA to drink tap water
Heather Hamilton
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Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) visited the site of the Ohio train derailment and challenged Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan to drink the local tap water.
“I don’t suspect he will,” Vance told Fox News host Tucker Carlson. “A lot of residents are not comfortable drinking the tap water either.”
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JD VANCE BLASTS BIDEN ADMINISTRATION OVER OHIO TRAIN DISASTER: ‘WE ARE RULED BY UNSERIOUS PEOPLE’
Vance blasted the Biden administration for refusing to deal with the core concerns of those living in the East Palestine, Ohio area following last week’s release of toxic fumes after a train derailed on Feb. 3 near the state’s eastern border.
“They are not getting answers from their authorities about exactly what’s going on, what’s being done to clean up the disaster,” Vance noted. “The railroad has completely failed to clean up the toxic soil that’s leaking into the riverways, into the waterways, and into the groundwater. So, there’s this question about whether we’re testing the water enough. The question that I have is why haven’t we cleaned up the contaminated soil that’s going to eventually contaminate the groundwater no matter what.”
“If you talk to the EPA, if you talk to the CDC, they cannot tell us what a clean threshold is for the water,” Vance added. “Unless we go in and study the effect of vinyl chloride on human beings, we’re never going to be able to say with confidence what is going to happen to the residents of East Palestine. They want to rebuild their community. They want to get back to normal life, but they can’t do it unless the government does its job.”
Courtney Miller, a resident of East Palestine, also shared her frustration with inconclusive safety guidelines and the added expenses of buying bottled water to avoid dealing with the contaminated water.
“Where’s our help?” Miller questioned. “Why are we not getting any answers?”
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On Thursday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre promised the Biden administration would be holding Norfolk Southern accountable for the derailment.
The White House’s response has drawn harsh criticism for being too slow, with specific frustration directed at Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, including Sen. Marco Rubio demanding that President Joe Biden fire Buttigieg over his “gross level of incompetence and apathy.”