Norfolk Southern announces $600M East Palestine settlement

The Center Square ^ | 4/9/24 | Christen Smith

[CFW]

Norfolk Southern reached a $600 million settlement in a class action lawsuit filed after a toxic train derailment near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border.

The deal, announced Tuesday, resolves all claims within a 20-mile radius of the accident in East Palestine, Ohio, that unfolded in February 2023. It is pending federal court approval.

The Center Square reached out to Gov. Josh Shapiro’s office for comment but did not receive a response before this publication. Both the governor’s administration and President Joe Biden have been openly critical, however, of Norfolk Southern’s response to the derailment and accused the railroad of prioritizing profits over safety.

Shapiro also negotiated a $7.4 million aid package with the company in the weeks after the crash. There were no injuries in the Feb. 3, 2023, incident, and little buzz about situation until Valentine's Day.

It’s unclear what impact the news will have on morale in border communities. During a committee hearing last month, residents in Pennsylvania said the legislative response to “Ohio’s Chernobyl” over the last 14 months has been underwhelming, at best.

[CFW]

I wonder how much the families who were harmed will actually receive?

[b4me]

really? such a low number when it effected so many people. Companies seem so willing to send money and supplies to other country but not help our own.

[swingdoc]

In comparison Trump was ordered to pay $83.3 million in his public defamation lawsuit and $354 million in the civil fraud case. The ex President has been hit with ~$440 million for saying something bad about someone and maybe inflating some valuations, and a train company is asked to pay $600 for jacking up an entire city. No legal biases in our system!

[blackdog]

Not enough for simple bond.

[Christopher]

Nowhere near as much as the lawyers.

[Texas resident]

Lawyers and politicians will hoover up about 90% of it.