Environmental activist Erin Brockovich has arrived in East Palestine three weeks after the disastrous train derailment that devastated the small Ohio community to work with the victims so ‘they can get justice, know their legal rights, and so we can hold the railroad accountable.’
In a tweet, Brockovich announced her arrival to East Palestine and her plan to hold a town hall meeting on Friday, Feb. 24. at 6 p.m. to work with the victim’s of the disaster. The 5,000 residents in the small Ohio community are facing devastating damages after a Norfolk South train carrying toxic chemicals derailed, causing an ecological disaster.
As an environment activist, Brockovich is best known for her film ‘Erin Brockovich’ which shares her involvement in a lawsuit against PG&E.
Her visit comes after U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and former President Donald Trump both made stops in East Palestine to address the train derailment earlier this week. However, Brockovich has made it clear that her visit is not political, tweeting, ‘I don’t care who you voted for, when crisis hits, we are all Americans, we are all human beings.’
Instead of focusing on President Biden’s absence from the disaster site, Brockovich has spent her time talking with local East Palestine residents about their concerns following the derailment.
In East Palestine, Brockovich tweeted images of her talking with the ‘wonderful people’ and sharing their experiences.
‘@keithricheal074 lives 5 blocks from the derailment in #EastPalenstine, and he says local police knocked on his door the night of the derailment to warn them.’ Brockovich tweeted Thursday. ‘He says he’s worried about what will happen to his dogs months from now if they go outside and eat the grass.’
Today, Brockovich posted an image of visible oil in East Palestine water with the caption, ‘Taken today!! ‘All Clear’ My A–!’
Her tweet comes after Republican Ohio Governor Mike DeWine on Tuesday visited East Palestine homes and drank tap water from each in an effort to reassure residents that their water supply was safe for human consumption.
Last week, Brockovich was tweeting about the Ohio train derailment calling for the Biden Administration to ‘STEP UP NOW.’
‘The Biden administration needs to get more involved in this #PalestineOhio train derailment now.’ Brockovich shared on Monday, Feb. 13.
She also criticized Republican Sen. J.D. Vance for his response to the situation sharing, ‘Hold them responsible. Hold them all responsible.’
Last week, the Ohio Senator set Twitter ablaze after sharing a video on Twitter of him scraping the bottom of a local creek bed with a stick, which appeared to show ‘chemicals coming out of the ground.’
‘There are dead worms and dead fish all throughout this water,’ Vance said in the video as he stood next to Leslie Run Creek in East Palestine, Ohio.
‘This is disgusting,’ he said.
A preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board did not offer an exact cause of the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment but outlined several operational concerns.
‘Surveillance video from a local residence showed what appeared to be a wheel bearing in the final stage of overheat failure moments before the derailment,’ the report said. ‘The wheel bearing and affected wheelset have been collected as evidence and will be examined by the NTSB.’