Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg will visit East Palestine, Ohio, on Thursday, nearly three weeks after a Norfolk Southern train derailment caused a toxic chemical spill in the area.
Buttigieg’s visit comes he faced criticism for waiting more than a week to publicly talk about the derailment and subsequent burn of toxic chemicals that continues to have residents fearing for their health and safety.
Buttigieg has since called on rail companies like Norfolk Southern to “remain profitable while maintaining a higher standard of safety and taking better care of their workers.”
His visit comes after the Environmental Protection Agency announced response efforts would transition from an “emergency phase” to a remediation phase, the Department of Transportation said in a statement.
While Gov. Mike Dewine (R) announced last week that the town’s municipal drinking water “showed no evidence of contamination,” the testing used by Ohio authorities was funded by the railroad operator itself and did not initially comply with federal standards, HuffPost first reported on Friday.
