Family Assistance Center has served 2,200 families, company has committed more than $5.6 million to the community
ATLANTA, Feb. 20, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) announced further progress in support of the Village of East Palestine, Ohio. This follows a visit Saturday by Norfolk Southern President and CEO Alan H. Shaw.
New Resource for Information
Over the weekend, Norfolk Southern launched NSMakingitRight.com as a resource for members of the East Palestine community and public at-large. The website includes regular updates on environmental clean up progress, services available at the Family Assistance Center (FAC), and answers to common questions and concerns.
Environmental Remediation
The company said 15,000 pounds of contaminated soil and 1.1 million gallons of contaminated water have already been excavated from the derailment site. The material will be transported to landfills and disposal facilities that are designed to accept it safely in accordance with state and federal regulations.
Additionally, a series of pumps have been placed upstream to reroute Sulphur Run around the derailment site. The affected portion of Sulphur Run has been dammed to protect water downstream. Environmental teams are treating the impacted portions of Sulphur Run with booms, aeration, and carbon filtration units. Those teams are also working with stream experts to collect soil and groundwater samples to develop a comprehensive plan to address any contamination that remains in the stream banks and sediment.
The majority of the hazardous rail cars have been decontaminated and are being held on-site to allow the National Transportation Safety Board to continue its investigation. Once that is completed, the cars will be scrapped and moved off-site for disposal.
Financial Assistance
The company’s FAC surpassed serving more than 2,200 families over the weekend. Since establishing the FAC Feb. 4, the company has made more than $3.4 million in direct payments to citizens impacted by the incident.
Last week, the company announced that it has expanded eligibility to all East Palestine residents in the 44413 ZIP code at the request of Mayor Trent Conaway. The FAC will also review individual requests for those outside the 44413 ZIP code. For example, inconvenience payments have been made to Beaver County, Pennsylvania residents who were evacuated.
Please note that Norfolk Southern is not requiring any releases in exchange for payments, and acceptance of reimbursements and/or inconvenience compensation is not a settlement of any future claim.
Those in need of assistance should visit the Norfolk Southern FAC at Abundant Life Church located 46469 State Route 46, New Waterford, Ohio, or call 1-800-230-7049. For more information on the FAC and documents needed for reimbursements, visit NSMakingitRight.com.
Community Support
Today, the company announced that a Norfolk Southern railroader who lives in East Palestine has accepted a one-year assignment as a dedicated community liaison. The position will report to CEO Alan Shaw’s chief of staff and will work directly with Shaw to ensure the community’s concerns are heard. The position will oversee a budget of $1 million for community needs and improvements.
“I want residents of East Palestine to know that Norfolk Southern will be in their community to help for as long as needed. Our new community liaison is a Norfolk Southern employee and resident of East Palestine. He will be an advocate for the community with a direct line to me and our senior leadership team,” said Shaw.
This brings the company’s financial commitment to East Palestine to more than $5.6 million to date, with more to come. That includes:
- $3.4 million in direct financial assistance to families
- $1 million community assistance fund
- $1 million budget for the new community liaison
- $220,000 reimbursement to fund new equipment for first responders
About Norfolk Southern
Since 1827, Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) and its predecessor companies have moved the goods and materials that drive the U.S. economy. Today, it operates a customer-centric and operations-driven freight transportation network. Committed to furthering sustainability, Norfolk Southern helps its customers avoid 15 million tons of yearly carbon emissions by shipping via rail. Its dedicated team members deliver more than 7 million carloads annually, from agriculture to consumer goods, and is the largest rail shipper of auto products and metals in North America. Norfolk Southern also has the most extensive intermodal network in the eastern U.S., serving a majority of the country’s population and manufacturing base, with connections to every major container port on the Atlantic coast as well as the Gulf of Mexico and Great Lakes. Learn more by visiting www.NorfolkSouthern.com.
SOURCE Norfolk Southern Corporation
