Few households opt out of $600 million Ohio train derailment deal

Very few people who live near the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, have opted out of a $600 million class-action settlement despite residents’ reservations about whether the settlement provides enough, so lawyers say the settlement it should be approved later this month.

Attorneys who negotiated the settlement with Norfolk Southern on behalf of all those affected by the disastrous February 2023 derailment said only 370 households and 47 businesses within a 20-mile (32-kilometer) radius of the derailment had waived property damage payments .

That includes just 82 waivers from households within 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) of the crash, which were promised $70,000 in property damage. People who lived on the edge of the area will receive just a few hundred dollars if a federal judge approves the settlement after a hearing on September 25.

A total of 54,925 applications had been submitted as of last week, and that number should be close to the final total as there was an August 22 deadline to submit forms.

“It is deeply gratifying that this community overwhelmingly supports this settlement,” attorneys for the plaintiffs said in a statement. “This result would not have been possible without their resolve and determination to hold Norfolk Southern accountable.”

A separate payment of up to $25,000 for personal injuries was more controversial because residents were required to waive any right to sue in the future if they develop cancer or other serious illnesses. But about 97% of East Palestinian residents still signed it.

Some residents complained that even though lawyers said this settlement was bigger than any other derailment settlement, the payouts still weren’t enough to compensate them for all their suffering. Many people do not like the fact that the relief payments they received from the railroad will be deducted from any settlement they eventually receive.

One of the key concerns for those opposed to the deal is that the contamination left behind from the spill and burning of dangerous chemicals after the train crash could be worse than they know. That’s why they filed a motion asking the judge to order the attorneys to release all the tests their expert did to the community.

The plaintiff’s attorneys said in their motion that they could not release those tests because they would violate the terms of the settlement. They sought to reassure the community that they had done extensive research to ensure the settlement was appropriate, interviewing about 70 people and reviewing nearly 1.35 million pages of documents.

A separate federal agreement between the government and the railroad will ensure that Norfolk Southern pays for the cleanup that is still ongoing and for long-term medical monitoring of residents and groundwater testing.

The National Transportation Safety Board confirmed earlier this summer that the derailment was caused by an overheated wheel bearing that was not caught in time by trackside detectors. Investigators also said they determined officials never had to open five tank cars containing vinyl chloride and burn the plastic ingredient because those tank cars were not going to explode.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs said that because of their extensive investigation, they were not surprised by anything that came out at the NTSB meeting in June.

Photo: This drone photo shows portions of a Norfolk and Southern freight train that derailed Friday night in East Palestine, Ohio, are still burning at midday Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) )

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