East Palestine, Ohio Railway Accident Attorneys

Our law firm represents people suing Norfolk Southern Railroad for damages. Contact us for a free legal consultation regarding a potential lawsuit against Norfolk Southern over the company’s freight train derailment on February 3, 2023 in East Palestine, Ohio. This accident was preventable, but worse, the response to breach tankers and release vinyl chloride and other toxic contents, and then set fire to them, created enormous clouds that threaten to poison the Ohio River Valley and other areas north and east.

Twenty of the train cars in the mile-long train contained hazardous materials. A fire erupted that led to a decision to burn vinyl chloride and other chemicals inside five of the tankers. The toxic chemicals inside those cars were ignited in what officials called a “controlled burn,” but there was nothing “controlled” about the fallout from that ill-advised decision. It unleashed a giant plume of carcinogenic chemicals that included hydrogen chloride, phosgene, butyl acrylate, ethylhexyl acrylate, ethylene glycol monobutyl. Worse, incredibly toxic dioxins are created and released by the burning of the chlorinated chemicals in the cars.

People and their property, livestock and pets in Pennsylvania, New York and elsewhere in the eastern and southern U.S. may also be affected. The fallout could also impact others in the middle and south central parts of North America, including parts of Kentucky, Arkansas and Missouri. Their water, crops and livestock could be harmed by the resulting dioxin fallout. Though any measure of dioxins in the air from the fire is unclear, and it is unclear how fast any such dioxins could disperse, Newspunch reported that birds in Lexington, Kentucky 378 miles away were dropping dead from the sky after the release. We also know dioxin contamination utterly destroyed New York’s Love Canal and the town of Times Beach, Missouri. As miners pay attention when canaries die in coal mines, so should we, until we can properly test the air and water for possible dioxin contamination.

“Norfolk Southern must be held accountable,” said attorney Conrad Adams, who has represented plaintiffs in railroad litigation for several years. “It has once again endangered the health of individuals who live in our communities and contaminated the water and land that we depend upon daily. There is absolutely no excuse for this type of negligent behavior, and Norfolk Southern must be judged by a jury of our peers.”

Mr. Adams and Matthews & Associates already represent people in several lawsuits against Norfolk Southern in railroad-related matters; we already have years of experience in how to proceed with litigation against this runaway train.

The Train was on Fire for 30 Minutes prior to Derailing in East Palestine

Video shows the Norfolk Southern train was on fire or sparking for at least 30 minutes before the train derailed in East Palestine. Rail track sensors designed to detect hotboxes or fires to prevent the kind of accident that occurred in Ohio appear to have failed, for whatever reason. Consequently, the engineers were unaware that there were cars on fire, so they took no action to correct the problem, until it was too late. Those hotbox fires led to derailment.

In prior days, train engineers observed their cars from a tail caboose, so that when their train took a long curve they could spot any problems. Then Norfolk Southern and other carriers jettisoned the caboose to save on costs, at the expense of safety and the kind of horror witnessed two weeks ago by the people of East Palestine, Ohio.

Related: CDC edited the lethal exposure profile for vinyl chloride from 100PPM to 100,000PPM just days before the disaster. The exposure limit had not changed in the previous 17 years.

‘Inside Job’: CDC Changed Toxicity Info on Vinyl Chloride Days Before Derailment

Dead Fish and Birds and Conflicted Officials

Thousands of fish have already been found dead in creeks and streams, while backyard chickens have been killed by the fallout ten miles north of East Palestine in Lima, Ohio. Meanwhile, thousands of people were forced to flee their homes while receiving contradictory messages from the U.S. EPA and Ohio Governor Mike DeWine regarding whether it was safe to return. Several returning local residents report being greeted by government “officials” in full Hazmat gear telling them it is safe to return to their homes.

Full Damage Extent Unknown

We won’t know the full extent of damage and destruction for some time yet, as toxic clouds full of insanely dangerous dioxins float east and north with the prevailing winds toward Pennsylvania and New York. Meanwhile, the water poisoned in East Palestine floats down the Ohio River and into the Mississippi River, carrying God only knows what kind of destruction all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. Food grown from contaminated soil in surrounding farmland, including many nearby Amish farms, could be poisoned for years.

We do know that dioxins are so dangerous that their prior misuse wiped out an entire American town: Times Beach, Missouri. But again, we don’t know the extent of dioxin contamination in Ohio from the “controlled release.” We have more questions than answers at this time.

Why choose our law firm for help? “Somebody has to do it.”

Our law firm is already engaged in litigation against Norfolk Southern Railroad. We also represent many people victimized in the catastrophic Dixie Fires in California.

Attorney David P. Matthews has been pursuing legal action against some of the largest corporations in the world for more than 30 years. Mr. Matthews has even tackled corruption in the U.S. government, in a case involving FBI entrapment of former NASA engineers. (See Operation Lightning Strike.) He has sued police departments in major cities on multiple occasions.

As difficult as it can be to work such far-reaching litigation through a labyrinthine court system often allied with both local and federal law enforcement, he has always said, “Somebody has to do it.”

Mr. Matthews has also represented railroad workers in several lawsuits against railroads throughout the years.

Matthews & Associates law firm has represented thousands of claimants in lawsuits against multi-national behemoths that include:

Norfolk Southern Railroad
Monsanto
Bayer
Pfizer
General Electric
General Motors
Johnson & Johnson
GlaxoSmithKline
Boehringer Ingelheim
The Roman Catholic Church
Boy Scouts of America
Chevron
Exxon Mobil

Free Legal Consultation

Our attorneys stand ready to assist those in the Ohio River Valley and elsewhere whose lives, homes, families, children, livestock, land and pets have been harmed by the foreseeable train derailment that occurred in East Palestine, Ohio on Feb. 3, 2023.

Investigations are ongoing and will be for some time. We don’t yet know the extent of the damage, or exactly how we may be able to help; but we are investigating the situation ourselves, and we would dearly love to help if we can.

Call 888-520-5202 or email us for a free, no-obligation consultation regarding a potential lawsuit against Norfolk Southern Railroad.

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