Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg visits Ohio train derailment site

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio-- Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg will visit the site of the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, on Thursday.

The secretary has come under pressure from East Palestine residents and other critics to visit the town in the wake of the February 3 derailment of a Norfolk Southern train that released toxic chemicals.

The disaster has left residents concerned about the safety of their water, air, and soil.

The Department of Transportation says Buttigieg is going now that The Environmental Protection Agency is moving out of the emergency response phase and into the long-term remediation phase. His visit also coincides with the NTSB issuing its factual findings of the investigation into the cause of the derailment and will allow the secretary to hear from USDOT investigators who were on the ground within hours of the derailment to support the NTSB’s investigation.