East Palestine train derailment causing PTSD and major depression in residents

POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER (PTSD) and major depression have been found in residents of Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia as direct effects of the 2023 East Palestine train derailment, a new study has shown.

Researchers, including those from the University of Virginia and the University of South Carolina, have published a study identifying the physical and psychological health impacts collected nine months after the event.

The derailment involved more than a dozen Norfolk Southern freight cars catching fire, ultimately prompting a controlled venting that released approximately 438,000 L of vinyl chloride into the air, waterways and soil. Exposure to vinyl chloride has been linked to serious health risks, including liver cancer and leukaemia. Around half of the residents in East Palestine had to evacuate the area.

Health conditions and distrust

Around 1,000 residents within a 65-mile radius of the derailment were surveyed, with the findings showing most respondents were concerned about the impact of exposure to themselves and family members.

Most respondents reported various ways in which they tried to limit their exposure to the vinyl chloride, including avoiding consuming water (51.8%) and food grown on land (51.5%). Half of all respondents reported at least one physical health problem that either started or got worse after the derailment. These included sinus drip (24.3%), cough (23.6%) and diarrhoea (12.2%).

More worrying is the psychiatric symptoms of the derailment, with mental health disorders being “highly prevalent” among all respondents. The study found that residents showed signs of major depression and comorbid PTSD, which is PTSD alongside other mental health conditions, including anxiety and depression.

Past experiences

The health study was conducted to better assess how communities can build resilience and prepare for natural and human-caused disasters, including process safety-related infrastructure failures and the release of toxic chemicals. Previous human-caused disasters included the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear meltdown, where residents in proximity to the meltdown were found to have developed PTSD and depression, as well as a social stigmatisation around being exposed to radiation.

Past research has shown that continued displacement and the slow support of the government had put East Palestine residents in severe distress.

Governmental negligence surrounding the derailment has come under scrutiny following the release of a letter from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which reveals that several chemical compounds – including known carcinogens – were excluded from the contaminated soil samples provided by Norfolk Southern.

The Government Accountability Project obtained the letter via a freedom of information request. The organisation says the letter shows that the EPA failed to conduct proper environmental sampling in East Palestine.

Researchers for the East Palestine health study say that for human-caused disasters, response programmes should provide more attention to community health, and stress and uncertainty.