After a year of putting it off, President Joe Biden will finally make a visit to East Palestine, Ohio. In February 2023, a train derailment in the town caused a toxic spill and fires sent hazardous smoke into the air.
"At about 8:55 p.m. ET on February 3, 2023, a Norfolk Southern freight train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, about a quarter-mile west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania state line. Norfolk Southern reported the incident to the National Response Center at 10:53 p.m. and EPA arrived on-site by 2:00 a.m. on February 4," the EPA recorded.
"Of the 150 train cars, about 50 cars were affected by the derailment. The rest were uncoupled and removed from the scene. Twenty of the affected cars contained hazardous materials, including vinyl chloride, ethylene glycol, ethylhexyl acrylate, butyl acrylate and isobutylene," the EPA report continues. "Some cars caught fire. Some cars spilled their loads into an adjacent ditch that feeds Sulphur Run, a stream that joins Leslie Run, which eventually empties into the Ohio River."
The trip was announced Wednesday morning and confirmed by White House Press Secretary Karine Jean Pierre during the daily briefing.
Karine Jean-Pierre struggles to explain why Joe Biden has taken so long to visit East Palestine, Ohio.
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) January 31, 2024
Biden has spent almost 130 days on vacation since the derailment. pic.twitter.com/9Pb0T58Kfo
When asked if Biden would drink the water to assure residents it is safe, Jean Pierre called the practice a "stunt."
“When the president is in East Palestine, will he drink the water there?”
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) January 31, 2024
Karine Jean-Pierre: “I’m not going to get into some sort of political stunts about drinking water.” pic.twitter.com/s7L5tmiiqX
President Donald Trump, who visited the town in the immediate aftermath of the disaster, is slamming Biden for his refusal to go until now.
"With the World blowing up around us, with the Middle East on FIRE, Biden has finally decided to visit East Palestine, Ohio, a year late, and only to develop some political credibility because EVERYTHING else he has done has been such a DISASTER," Trump said on Truth Social. "I know those great people, I was there when it counted, and his reception won’t be a warm one. Worst President in History!"
East Palestine, OH Business Owner: "... The leader of our country did not show up to the greatest catastrophe of 2023. And now, he's going to show up because it's an election year... the polls show President Trump came and supported us when he didn't have to." pic.twitter.com/TkxTKeSPw0
— MAGA War Room (@MAGAIncWarRoom) January 31, 2024
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