Biden ordered door-to-door inspections in Ohio more than 3 weeks after toxic train derailment

On Friday, President Biden directed federal agencies to go home in Ohio more than three weeks after a toxic train derailment that affected an East Palestine village.

Teams from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Federal Emergency Management Agency will visit residents starting Saturday, asking how they are doing and what they need, and connecting them with federal and nonprofit resources.

The Walk Teams are modeled after similar groups after natural disasters.

The president ordered members of these teams to visit as many homes as possible, with officials saying the immediate goal was to visit at least 400 homes.

BIDEN BREAKING ON ANSWER WHILE VISITING EAST PALESTINE: “WHO IS BOOSTING WHO?”

President Joe Biden walks towards members of the media before boarding the Marine on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, February 24, 2023, for a trip to Wilmington, Delaware. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnick)

Biden has no plans to visit the community at this time.

The order comes after Republicans in the House of Representatives launched an investigation into the February 3 train derailment and response to the disaster.

On Friday, Biden also retracted claims that his administration was not involved in the relief effort.

“We were there two hours after the train went down. Two hours, he said. “I’ve talked to every major figure in both Pennsylvania and Ohio. And so the idea that we’re not engaged just doesn’t exist.”

BIDEN DESCRIED BY EAST PALESTINE MAYOR WHO CLAIMS HE ‘DOES NOT CARE’ ABOUT CITY DURING TRIP TO UKRAINE

Volunteer Larry Kaller helps load water into a car in East Palestine, Ohio while cleaning up after a Norfolk South train derailment on February 3, Friday, February 24, 2023. (Photo by AP/Matt Fried)

On February 3, a derailment in Norfolk to the south prompted an evacuation following an uncontrolled release and burning of vinyl chloride. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources said on Thursday that the incident potentially killed nearly 44,000 aquatic animals and there have been isolated reports of related illnesses in animals and humans. Officials say testing and monitoring have shown the air and water are largely safe.

During the Feb. 15 town hall following the incident, East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway said he “didn’t hear anything from the White House” until Feb. 14.

One of the residents asked the mayor where the transport sec. Pete Buttigieg was before EPA Secretary and Administrator Michael Regan visited the area. The Department of Transportation noted that the Federal Railroad Administration and the Office of Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety arrived on the scene within hours of the crash and that those agencies supported an investigation by the independent National Transportation Safety Board.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg visits the site of the Feb. 3 train derailment in South Norfolk on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023 in East Palestine, Ohio. (Ellie Vugrincic/Defender via AP, Poole)

The Republican Party, including former President Trump, has strongly criticized the government’s response, with some calling for Buttigieg’s resignation.

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The timeline provided by the White House says the Department of Transportation provided “initial incident notification” to members of the Ohio Congressional delegation and relevant committees on February 4, when the Environmental Protection Agency deployed real-time air monitoring instruments around the crash site and Community – Staff reached out to Gov. Mike Devin on Feb. 5.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.