Norfolk Southern agrees to $600 million to settle lawsuit over fiery Ohio crash

ATLANTA — Atlanta-based Norfolk Southern will likely pay $600 million to settle a lawsuit over a fiery train derailment.

The 2023 disaster spewed more than 1 million pounds of hazardous chemicals into the soil, water, and air in East Palestine, Ohio.

The settlement will resolve all lawsuits filed by people who lived there, and also business owners.

In addition to the civil penalty, Norfolk Southern agreed to reimburse the EPA an additional $57 million in response costs and set up a $25 million health care fund to pay for 20 years of medical exams in the community. The railroad will also pay $25 million to $30 million for long-term monitoring of drinking water and groundwater.

“This settlement is historic in many ways and will begin to make up for some of the damage caused to the residents of East Palestine. And it would absolutely push the industry in the direction that we would like for the industry to go,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said. “Again, if some of these provisions that we’ve secured and locked in had been in place, we may not even be where we are today.”

Norfolk Southern is not admitting to any liability or wrongdoing in the settlement.

The railroad won’t face criminal charges, and this latest settlement won’t add anything to Norfolk Southern’s roughly $1.7 billion in total costs related to the derailment because the Atlanta-based company was already anticipating those costs.

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Many East Palestine residents feel this settlement doesn’t do nearly enough to a company that just reported a $527 million profit in the fourth quarter of last year even with the derailment costs. The railroad’s CEO received $13.4 million in total compensation last year.

“Honestly, no amount can ever make this right, but it should be at least enough to hurt them a little bit. I’m sure that’s not going to hurt their bottom line at all,” Jami Wallace said.

But resident Misti Allison said it is encouraging to see the investigations and lawsuits against the railroad start to wrap up, and the cleanup is expected to be done sometime later this year.

“I think this is a great step, but let’s continue to make sure the community is made whole,” Allison said.

Norfolk Southern officials said they believe the relatively small size of this settlement reflects how much the railroad has already done, including paying $780 million in cleanup costs and providing $107 million in aid to residents and the communities affected.

“We are pleased we were able to reach a timely resolution of these investigations that recognizes our comprehensive response to the community’s needs and our mission to be the gold standard of safety in the rail industry,” CEO Alan Shaw said. “We will continue keeping our promises and are invested in the community’s future for the long haul.”

The railroad is still working to resolve a lawsuit Ohio filed against it after the derailment.

A judge will decide whether to give final approval in a hearing set for September.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

RELATED NEWS:

EXCLUSIVE: Norfolk Southern’s CEO responds to toxic train derailment, metro safety concerns He discussed safety concerns and changes facing the train industry following the toxic train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.

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