COLUMBUS, Ohio — (COLUMBUS, Ohio) -- Ohio is suing Norfolk Southern Railway over last month's toxic train derailment in East Palestine, state Attorney General Dave Yost announced Tuesday.
The 58-count complaint, filed in federal court on Tuesday, alleges the railway operator violated various federal and state environmental laws and Ohio Common Law,"recklessly endangering" the health of residents and Ohio's natural resources, Yost's office said.
Yost said the lawsuit seeks to address any economic and long-term health impacts that residents of East Palestine may experience due to the derailment. He said he sat down with Norfolk Southern officials on Monday to discuss possible compensation, including a fund to compensate for long-term losses to real estate values and a fund to address any"delayed" health impacts.
Several East Palestine residents have filed a class-action against Norfolk Southern, seeking punitive damages as well as a fund for medical monitoring and testing, among other relief. Yost said the state's lawsuit is focused on seeking damages to"the state of Ohio, to its environment, to its economy, as well as the broader damage to the people," and that the varied lawsuits"are about different consequences of the same fact.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has ordered Norfolk Southern to pay for the cleanup of the train wreck and chemical release. The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Railroad Administration also announced last week that it will conduct a safety assessment of Norfolk Southern's railway safety operations"following multiple safety incidents."
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