A black plume rises over East Palestine, Ohio, as a result of a controlled detonation of a portion of the derailed Norfolk and Southern trains Monday, Feb. 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

EAST PALESTINE — The explosion, fire and huge plume of smoke over East Palestine, Ohio, on Monday looked like something out of a Hollywood blockbuster movie, but the controlled burn operation at a derailed train in Columbiana County worked, according to Norfolk Southern.

“The controlled breach of several rail cars has been completed successfully under the supervision of experts and first responders. Some of the material is now burning off consistent with expectations from the earlier models, and is expected to drain for a short number of hours.

“We have been, and will continue, monitoring air quality with the Ohio EPA. Remediation work at the site can now safely continue,” a Norfolk Southern press release said.

The simultaneous slow release of the chemical vinyl chloride from five rail cars at the train derailment site into a trough that was then ignited created a large plume above the village.

The evacuation order remains in effect in a 1-mile radius as the vinyl chloride continued to burn Monday night after a successful controlled release from the train cars.

Mayor Trent Conaway could give no time for when residents will be able to return to their homes, since its an ongoing event, but said “I’m proud of our citizens. They finally took action and got out of a dangerous area.”

Scott Deutsche of Norfolk Southern said the flames were lit in the pit area near the rail cars of the derailed train at 4:35 p.m. Monday and at 4:38, they detonated the small charges to make small holes in the cars to release the chemical.

He said one of the cars was about out and the residual fire in the pit will be allowed to burn out and be monitored through the night.

“I’m very pleased. The detonation went perfect,” Deutsche said.

Once the fire cools down and is out and the metal on the cars cool down, then the wrecking operation will commence to remove the cars. He said the situation won’t get worse again since there’s no pressure now. The fire will burn out on its own.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency On-Scene Coordinator James Justice and OEPA Emergency Response Team member Kurt Kollar also spoke at the evening press conference about the air quality and waterways. Justice said there were some readings of the vinyl chloride byproducts, phosgene and hydrogen chloride, at the site and low level hit near the site still in the evacuation zone. Nothing was seen that wasn’t expected and the air quality will continue to be monitored.

Kollar said they didn’t find any hits in the waterway and that what they saw was a positive picture.

In an earlier press conference, Gov. Mike DeWine addressed a large media contingent regarding the plan, noting he had been talking with Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and consulting with the emergency responders, the Ohio National Guard, U.S. Department of Defense, Norfolk Southern, Environmental Protection Agency, OEMA, and the state and local Emergency Management Agency. “We had to weigh different risks with no great solutions,” he said, sharing the concern of the railroad for a possible explosion, describing the explosion “as potentially catastrophic.”

Based on modeling information conducted by the Ohio National Guard and U.S. Department of Defense, the governors ordered an immediate evacuation of a 1-mile by 2-mile area covering the eastern part of East Palestine and the Darlington area of Pennsylvania in Beaver County.

The vinyl chloride in the five rail cars was considered unstable due to a drop in temperature that was discovered Sunday night. According to Norfolk Southern, the pressure relief valves had stopped working on some of the cars, putting them at risk of exploding.

Rather than let that happen, the decision was made to do a controlled release of the vinyl chloride. A railroad spokesman said small charges would be used to create small holes 2½ to 3 inches in diameter in the tanks for the slow release of the material into trenches dug in the ground where flares were lined up to ignite the chemical and burn it off.

The whole process was estimated to take one to three hours. The concern was that if the tanks exploded on their own, the result would be far more damaging and deadly. This way, the officials controlled what happened.

“That’s the safest way to control that situation,” Scott Deutsche of Norfolk Southern said.

The material left after the chemical burns out will then be remediated.

During the press conference, DeWine urged citizens to leave their homes before the controlled burn, explaining the possible health consequences.

“You need to leave. You just need to leave. It’s a matter of life and death,” DeWine said.

Fire Chief Keith Drabick said they had been working closely with Pennsylvania officials and the evacuation of residents was something they’ve been stressing from the first moment the train derailed.

“We just want them to be safe, that’s all I wanted from the start,” Drabick said.

EPA and OEPA officials said they would continue to monitor both the air and the surface water and ground water, saying the material that went into local creeks had been contained.

All three county commissioners attended the press conference with the governor, along with state legislators and Pennsylvania officials.

“We appreciate Gov. DeWine, when he became aware of this last night, he immediately said he would be here. He’s here with his team, his complete team from Columbus, and we’re appreciative of that. Everyone needs to stay calm and follow the directions of law enforcement,” Columbiana County Commissioner Mike Halleck said.

“I understand this situation has been very overwhelming for East Palestine families impacted by the train derailment within their community. Please be assured as your state representative, I have spent this past weekend with local, county and state officials identifying solutions that will keep our residents and the surrounding area as safe as possible during this serious situation,” state Rep. Monica Robb Blasdel, R-Columbiana, said. “Today, I have joined Gov. DeWine in East Palestine as we continue working on ways to remedy this precarious event. I want to thank our governor, local officials and our first responders for their efforts to minimize any damage done and to keep everyone safe. And to our residents, I truly appreciate your patience and resilience during this very difficult time. I will continue to provide updates when readily available as we work tirelessly to get through this together.”

State Sen. Michael Rulli, R-Salem, also accompanied the governor at the press conference, and said he’s closely monitoring developments at the site.

“This is an extremely dangerous situation affecting many people,” he said. “Our first priority has been getting people evacuated from the immediate area. If anyone needs help with temporary housing or any other kind or emergency assistance, do not hesitate to reach out.”

“My prayers are with our brave first responders, railroad workers and for all the families forced from their homes,” Rulli said. “We need to let the professionals do their jobs to secure this site so we can make sure the area is finally safe for people to go back home.”

School was canceled for the remainder of the week and village hall will remain closed today.