Since a train carrying hazardous materials derailed in Ohio nearly two
weeks ago, residents have feared for their safety. A controlled burn of
the toxic materials has filled the air and covered surface waters and soil with chemicals. Dead fish have floated in nearby creeks, and an unnerving aroma has lingered in the air.
But for many commentators from across the political spectrum, the
speculation has gone far beyond known facts. Right-wing commentators have
been particularly critical, using the crisis to sow distrust about
government agencies and suggest that the damage could be irreparable.
On social media like Twitter and Telegram, commentators have called the situation the olargest environmental disaster in historyo or simply
oChernobyl 2.0,o invoking the 1986 nuclear disaster. They warned, without evidence, that vital water reservoirs serving states downriver could be
badly contaminated. And they suggested that the authorities, railroad companies and mainstream news media were purposefully obscuring the full
toll of the crisis.
o?Planned attack, cover-up or both?o asked oConservative Daily Podcast,o a program known for pushing far-right talking points.
Some of that speculation was echoed by mainstream outlets like Fox News,
which suggested the fallout could be catastrophic.
oYou better punch in at 9 a.m., Ohio, even if it means inhaling mustard
gas on the way in,o said a sarcastic Jesse Watters, the Fox News host, on Tuesday, over a title reading: oOhio town looks like Chernobyl.o
The Environmental Protection Agency and state officials have acknowledged
that the situation in East Palestine, Ohio, is disastrous in many ways.
After the train derailed on Feb. 3, a fire broke out and about 50 of the
150 cars were derailed or damaged. Fearing an explosion, officials ordered nearby residents to evacuate before conducting a controlled burn, which released a toxic plume of smoke for several hours that was visible for
miles.
Since then, the E.P.A. has said air quality has returned to safe levels. Residents have been allowed to return. A chemical odor lingers because
people can smell the contaminants even when they are far below hazardous concentrations, according to the agency. Water testing found ono
indication of risko to public water systems so far, the E.P.A. said,
though private wells should be tested. Utilities drawing from the Ohio
River were taking precautions, and at least one company said it had not detected any changes in the water.
At a town-hall meeting on Wednesday, frustrated residents pressed
officials for assurances that the air and water were safe. Experts urged caution as they assessed the long-term consequences, warning that airborne contaminants can settle on surfaces, seep into wells and migrate through cracks into basements and homes.
Yet influencers and right-wing commentators were quick to the draw with conclusions of their own, theorizing about the extent of the damage and
the federal response, which they have said amounted to an extensive cover-
up.
oItAs a really scary thing,o said Nick Sortor, a video journalist who has covered the situation, on oTucker Carlson Tonight,o the popular Fox News
show. oTo think that the federal government cannot be trusted enough to
tell us whether or not itAs safe to go into an area like this.o
oWell, they forced the Covid vaccines on the country,o Mr. Carlson
replied, oso I think they canAt be trusted.o
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who oversees railroads, has
become a target of criticism for many conservatives. Mr. Carlson called
Mr. Buttigieg oflamboyantly incompetento and said his actions were
uncaring oalmost to the point of evil.o
Online, some nonscientists wrote elaborate analyses about the toxic
chemicals, speculating that the airborne concentration of vinyl chloride,
one of the chemicals being carried on the train, was dangerously high.
They rebuffed the E.P.A.As assessment that the air was safe, concluding instead that the area surrounding East Palestine was badly contaminated
for miles.
oMind you I am no chemist, but simply looking up what these compounds can
do is worrying,o wrote one user on the chat app Telegram in an analysis claiming the toxins would have been safer if not burned. In the town
meeting on Wednesday, Trent R. Conaway, the mayor of East Palestine, said: oThere were two options: Either we blow it up, or it blows up itself.
There wasnAt a third.o
Local media reports described several environmental consequences from the controlled burn, including that some fish were found dead in nearby creeks
and that some domesticated animals had fallen sick. An E.P.A.
representative said at the town meeting that the chemicals were lethal to fish, not humans, and that the waterways were already repopulating with
fish.
But those reports quickly melded with unconfirmed, and far more severe, reports of environmental harms extending far beyond the burn site.
oDead fish and cattle being reported as far as 100 miles away from the
site,o wrote Stew Peters, a right-wing commentator, on Twitter, offering
no evidence. The tweet received more than 40 million views.
The belief in a cover-up has gained steam in the days since, as internet
users used the hashtag #OhioChernobyl to claim that national and local
media were ignoring the disaster, though all major news networks and
several local news organization devoted at least some coverage to the
events.
Those claims were emboldened after a reporter for NewsNation, a cable television news channel, was arrested while filming a report at a news conference and charged with criminal trespassing and resisting arrest. The charges were later dropped.
oHow does a reporter get hit with acriminal trespassA?o asked Chris Cuomo,
the former CNN anchor, who hosts a show on NewsNation. oIAll tell you how. This is when people in power donAt want you around.o
Stuart A. Thompson is a reporter on the Technology desk covering misinformation and disinformation. @stuartathompson
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/16/technology/ohio-train-derailment- chernobyl.html
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