April 26 (UPI) -- Norfolk Southern Corporation said Wednesday a $387 million charge for the East Palestine Ohio train derailment contributed to a drop in first-quarter 2023 earnings by 34% to $711 million, down from $1.1 billion in the first quarter of 2022.
"From the beginning, we have been guided by one principle: We are going to do whatever it takes to make it right for East Palestine and the surrounding areas," said Norfolk Southern CEO Alan H. Shaw in a statement. "We are making progress every day and I'm proud of our people. Our response reflects our strategy of focusing on long-term priorities and value."
The Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Norfolk Southern March 31 on behalf of the Environmental Protection Agency, alleging the railroad had violated the Clean Water Act with the derailment.
Attorney General Merrick Garland said the suit was to "ensure that Norfolk Southern carries the financial burden for the harm it has caused and continues to inflict on the community."
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Declaring that the East Palestine derailment was "entirely avoidable", Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost also sued Norfolk Southern in March. His suit said the train crew was instructed to continue movement despite indication of a defective, leaking journal bearing. That bearing was not inspected or repaired before being used on another train, according to the suit.
Ohio's suit said: "In the last ten years, Norfolk Southern's accident rate increased by 80 percent, according to a reported analysis of Federal Railroad Administration data. And at least twenty Norfolk Southern derailments since 2015 have involved chemical releases. Norfolk Southern also has recently had numerous derailments involving faulty wheel bearings."
Just weeks after the East Palestine derailment, Norfolk Southern had another train derailment in Springfield Township, Ohio near Cincinnati. And a Norfolk Southern conductor was killed in Ohio March 7 when he was hit by a dump truck.
As Norfolk Southern CEO Shaw apologized for the East Palestine derailment during a Senate committee hearing March 9, another Norfolk Southern train derailed in Alabama.
