Feb. 20 (UPI) -- Public health officials will provide medical assistance to residents of East Palestine, Ohio, in a greater response to increasing fears in the community after a train loaded with toxic chemicals derailed more than two weeks ago, leading to possible contamination of the air and drinking water in the region.
Starting Tuesday, health experts with the Ohio Department of Health, the Columbiana County Health Department, and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will meet face-to-face with citizens for two weeks as part of a series of public health clinics to answer medical questions and provide health assessments, medical care and other assistance in the wake of the disaster.
Since the crash happened on Feb. 3., concerned residents have reported experiencing continued symptoms, like burning eyes and irritated skin.
"I heard you, the state heard you, and now the Ohio Department of Health and many of our partner agencies are providing this clinic, where people can come and discuss these vital issues with medical providers," said Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff, the department's director.
Residents were invited to begin scheduling appointments early Monday, with the first clinic set to be held from 12-6 p.m. Tuesday at First Church of Christ on W. Martin St., in East Palestine. Registered nurses, toxicologists, and mental health specialists are expected to be on hand to provide care and deeper insights about the continuing situation.
The next clinics will be held from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday; from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday; and from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday, according to a release from the Ohio Department of Health.
A mobile unit provided by the Community Action Agency of Columbiana County will also be on site to provide additional engagement with the community during the same hours.
The clinics will continue from Feb. 27 to March 4, and be held 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, while the mobile unit will be available from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.
Over the weekend, major utility service providers in Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati shut off water intake from the Ohio River to prevent any chemicals from potentially flowing into the region.
Greater Cincinnati Water Works, which serves roughly 240,000 customers in three counties, called its move a precautionary measure while noting that so far no contaminants had been found at its local intake site much farther downstream from the crash.
"The testing involved four chemicals -- butyl acrylate, vinyl chloride, ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, and ethylhexyl acrylate," the agency said in a statement. "The chemicals are used in industrial processes including the production of lacquers, enamels, inks, adhesives, paint thinners and industrial cleaners. So far, these chemicals have not been detected in the intake samples."
Similar results have been shown in tests by the Ohio River Valley Sanitation Commission, which is monitoring chemical levels along the Ohio River's entire 981-mile span.
The accident, which occurred Feb. 3, involved a Norfolk Southern train loaded with toxic chemicals including vinyl chloride. Fearing an explosion days after the accident, emergency officials ordered a controlled chemical burn from five of the derailed cars, which sent a large plume of black smoke billowing into the atmosphere on Feb. 6.
Residents were allowed to return home five days after the derailment, and since officials have been trying to tamp down panic, which was amplified by an estimated 3,500 small fish that turned up dead across several miles of streams near the crash site.
Despite continued assurances that the water and air are safe, East Palestine residents remain worried that people, pets, livestock and farm animals had already been exposed in the disaster's immediate aftermath.
"Why are people getting sick if there's nothing in the air or in the water," one resident declared in a recent town hall meeting that was also intended to allay the community's fears.
On Sunday, Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown also said he believes conditions are safe in East Palestine, but noted that residents had a "right to be skeptical."
"We think the water's safe," Brown told CNN's "State of the Union," days after he visited the town of fewer than 5,000 residents. "But when you return to your home, you should be tested again for your water and your soil and your air, not to mention those that have their own wells."
Lawmakers from both parties are demanding answers from the Biden administration over its response to the derailment, with Republicans criticizing the Department of Transportation's oversight of the U.S. freight system, saying Norfolk Southern had been allowed to operate a train of 150 cars with only three employees.
