East Palestine, Ohio, residents reported more unusual health problems following the train derailment, which saw the release of toxic chemicals into the water, ground, and air.
Ohio resident, Wade Lovett, reported suffering from breathing issues after the derailment and controlled burn of hazardous materials.
“Doctors say I definitely have the chemicals in me, but there’s no one in town who can run the toxicological tests to find out which ones they are,” Lovett told the New York Post.
“My voice sounds like Mickey Mouse. My normal voice is low,” he said.
“It’s hard to breathe, especially at night,” he added. “My chest hurts so much at night I feel like I’m drowning. I cough up phlegm a lot. I lost my job because the doctor won’t release me to go to work.”
Another resident, Shelby Walker, said she and her family had suffered various symptoms since the derailment.
“The bad smell comes and goes,” Walker said.
“Yesterday was the first day in probably three or four days that I could smell anything. I lost my smell and my sense of taste. I had an eye infection in both eyes. I was having respiratory issues like I was just out of breath. Other members of my family have had eye infections and strep throat,” she added.
“The cleanup crew drives past us at night and won’t even look at us. It’s like we don’t exist. No one has reached out to us or told us anything,” she continued.
Rise in health issues
Since East Palestine residents were told it was safe to return to their homes earlier this month, there has been a massive rise in reports of health issues, including animal die-offs in the area.
“When we went back on the 10th, that’s when we decided that we couldn’t raise our kids here,” local Amanda Greathouse told CNN.
Greathouse said she also noticed a smell that “reminded me of hair perming solution.”
She developed nausea and a rash upon returning home earlier this month.
“When we left, I had a rash on my skin on my arm, and my eyes were burning for a few days after that,” added Greathouse, who is the mother of two children.
“The chemical smell was so strong that it made me nauseous,” Greathouse said. “I just wanted to quickly pick up what I needed and leave. I only took a few pieces of clothes because even the clothes smelled like chemicals, and I’m afraid to put them on my kids.”
Katlyn Schwarzwaelder reported that she and her boyfriend suffered similar health issues since the toxic crash.
“I undressed to get into the shower, and I had a rash all over the side of my face on both sides and all over my chest,” Schwarzwaelder said, adding: “My boyfriend Chris also had a rash on his left side, and I mean to this moment, right now, I have just a really low-grade constant headache.”
Last week, Ohio Sen. Michael Rulli (R-Salem) warned Ohio residents not to drink or bathe in the water.
“It is not safe,” Rulli affirmed.
“Anyone within ten miles, I am begging you not to drink the water. I am begging you not to bathe in the water. It is not safe,” he said.
“Now that we’ve had this disaster, and fortunately for us, no one got killed on the initial explosion, but we got to worry about cancer in the next 5, 10, 15, 20 years,” Rulli continued.
“So what I’m suggesting is that everyone goes as far away as you can and get a hotel room,” he said, adding, “We got people that are fighting with Norfolk Southern. Norfolk says they’re going to pay for it. We got to hold their feet to the fire.”
Meanwhile, officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) arrived in East Palestine on Saturday to assess health risks.
On Friday, Texas A&M and Carnegie Mellon researchers said nine out of about 50 chemicals present on the Norfolk Southern-operated train were above “normal” concentrations, adding that if these levels continue, they may be of health concern.”
READ MORE: 9/11 Lawyer Warns East Palestine Residents Govt Is Lying to Them about Water Quality
