OxyVinyls will contribute to the $600 million settlement in the East Palestine train derailment case

In September, a federal judge approved a $600 million class-action settlement against Norfolk Southern—the freight company responsible for the Feb. 3, 2023, train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, which released toxic chemicals into the air and local environment. The payment would compensate individuals and businesses affected by the derailment.

Last week, Norfolk Southern reached an agreement with OxyVinyls—the OxyChem affiliate that manufactured the vinyl chloride carried on the Norfolk Southern train—under which OxyVinyls will contribute to the settlement.

The agreement came before an April 23 jury verdict in a federal court in Ohio that Norfolk Southern is fully responsible for paying the $600 million. Norfolk Southern had brought the case to court to try to get OxyVinyls and GATX, which owned some of the train’s railcars, to contribute to the settlement.

Vinyl chloride, a highly flammable carcinogen used for making polyvinyl chloride, was in five of the derailed cars. In a controversial move, authorities released and burned the liquefied vinyl chloride, fearing polymerization and a potential explosion that would send toxic gases and shrapnel into the local environment. An investigation by the US National Transportation Safety Board later deemed this vent and burn “unnecessary.”

OxyVinyls also questioned the basis for making the vent and burn decision because, without an external initiator, a polymerization reaction couldn’t have occurred—information the company provided Norfolk Southern before officials made the decision.

Also, the temperature of the railcar’s shell didn’t continue to rise, as would be expected if a polymerization reaction were occurring. Norfolk Southern has argued that it received conflicting information from OxyVinyls’ representatives on the ground, and hence, the chemical company should also be held accountable.

Under the recent agreement, OxyVinyls will pay a portion of the $600 million settlement, but how much is unclear. C&EN contacted Norfolk Southern and OxyVinyls to get more details, but both companies responded that “the terms of the settlement are confidential.”

Norfolk Southern failed to get GATX, the company that owned the railcar whose wheel bearing overheated and caused the derailment, to contribute. The jury didn’t find GATX (or OxyVinyls) liable for damages and determined that the railcar company didn’t need to pay toward the settlement amount.