Patriot Hands Out Bottled Water In East Palestine As Residents Demand Answers

The federal government has abandoned the residents of East Palestine, Ohio.

EPA officials and Gov. Mike DeWine (R) previously stated the municipal water supply in East Palestine is safe to drink.

WATCH:

"Absolutely. If I was there right now, I would drink it."@Alex_Presha asked @GovMikeDeWine if he would drink tap water in East Palestine, Ohio, after the EPA said it was confident it's safe to consume in the wake of this month's toxic train derailment. https://t.co/NMyvKCtlcS pic.twitter.com/4m8XtENxB7

— ABC News Live (@ABCNewsLive) February 16, 2023

However, we’re seeing reports of the Ohio River contaminated with vinyl chloride.

The Ohio River Is Now Contaminated with Vinyl Chloride

The Ohio River is a critical source of water that serves more than 10% of the United States population.

Worse yet, if this contamination reaches the Mississippi, it could affect most of the farmland in the country.

PRESS CONFERENCE: Per the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources, “There is a plume of chemicals in the Ohio River, moving downstream near Huntington, West Virginia, right now”! pic.twitter.com/EMSOFbMkNQ

— Stew Peters (@realstewpeters) February 15, 2023

Water tests around East Palestine have shown disturbing results.

Water test around East Palestine in Ohio pic.twitter.com/TeeVzv7sIG

— idkturnaround (@iwantstocks) February 14, 2023

Video footage has shown dead fish in a local waterway near the East Palestine train derailment.

New Video Shows Fish Dying In River Near Ohio Chemical Spill

Animals and fish have reportedly been dying in nearby towns since officials burned the chemicals at the derailment site.

An East Palestine woman's chickens all die following the controlled burn and train derailment.

What's going on? pic.twitter.com/XMURTHWlWN

— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) February 14, 2023

Who seriously thinks the water is safe to drink?

East Palestine residents still have lots of unanswered questions.

They demanded answers at a Town Hall Wednesday evening.

NOW: We are inside the East Palestine gym. This is not a town hall set up. There are several tables - residents can go to each table and ask questions.

We were told no interviews are allowed to be conducted inside. @wsyx6 pic.twitter.com/udvGaqhvQX

— Kate Siefert (@KateWSYX6) February 16, 2023

FULL STORY: 'Are we really safe?' East Palestine residents want answers after train wreckhttps://t.co/wZer9JjcRV

— Kate Siefert (@KateWSYX6) February 16, 2023

WSYX reported:

Residents were ordered to leave the area until air tests came back safe. Since then, fears have grown as many wonder what effects releasing and burning those chemicals had.

"Are we really safe? Is our water safe?... You destroyed our town. Why? This could have been prevented," Melissa Boyer told us.

The Ohio EPA said Wednesday that the tests from the wells that feed into East Palestine's municipal water came back negative for contaminants related to the wreck.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources estimates the spill affected more than seven miles of streams and killed some 3,500 fish, mostly small ones such as minnows and darters. There hadn’t been any confirmed deaths of other wildlife, including livestock, state officials said.

Residents are still concerned.

"The whole town is here and everyone is really upset and afraid of what is going to happen," Mary Stanley said.

Residents have started taking matters into their own hands due to the lack of help from federal officials.

One man drove to East Palestine to hand out bottled water.

"Our government is not standing up to help people out. Corporation that dropped the bomb on the city isn't standing up to help people out," he said.

WATCH:

⭐️SHARE⭐️
This man drove to East Palestine to hand out bottles of water because the federal government refuses to help.

Patriot! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/A5Ixx010Rq

— DailyNoah.com (@DailyNoahNews) February 16, 2023

East Palestine residents continued to receive mixed messages from state and federal officials about the water supply's safety.

Gov. DeWine said to drink bottled water "out of an abundance of caution."

Per Fox News:

"Out of an abundance of caution, we have told people, ‘Yes, use a bottle of water. Don’t take a chance,'" he told CNN Wednesday morning.

The Republican governor said the state had received results on Tuesday from testing on water from the first well in the village that showed it was safe to drink.

Additional results were expected Wednesday, and officials were continuing to monitor the water in different streams.

He noted that the thousands of fish that were found dead had been killed shortly after the incident.

"Look, what I said yesterday: I would be back there if I was living in the community," DeWine said. "Look, we're doing testing with the air. The air has been safe; it continues to be safe. The drinking water that comes into the system we think is deep wells. We think it's safe, but we told people [that], out of an abundance of caution [and] until we get the tests back, you should drink bottled water.

The Ohio EPA said the municipal water is safe to drink.

From CBS News:

The new results also show that the treated water from the wells – located about one mile from the train derailment site – showed "no detection of contaminants associated with the derailment."

"With these test results, Ohio EPA is confident that the municipal water is safe to drink," the state said.

The wells are at least 56 feet below the ground and covered by solid steel that protect them from contamination, the state said, adding that the water from the wells is treated before being made available for consumption.

Who seriously believes them?