An Ohio resident slammed U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg after the train disaster in East Palestine, calling on him to “step down” in an exclusive interview with Breitbart News.
The resident told Breitbart News “right after” the train derailment and the controlled explosion, “I started — I personally — and I had a couple friends of mine who did not feel well.”
“It did go away, but, and also the smell has definitely been different,” he added.
After being asked what type of symptoms he experienced, the East Palestine resident said, “my stomach — like my abdomen — stomach ache, a lot of pain. And then my friends, they had coughs.”
“So it’s not good. It’s definitely not good,” he continued. “Most people did not take any precautions, because no one from the federal level gave any precautions. There was nothing.”
“There was no advice,” the resident added. “It was just like, ‘Alright, we are going to do a controlled nuke of your town, okay? And look over here while the whole cloud over the whole town is just black,’ going, ‘Oh, it’s definitely not toxic. Don’t worry about a thing.’”
“People are like, ‘I can’t breathe.’ Other people are coughing, I’m getting stomach — abdomen pain that I’ve never had in my life, 33 years, never had it in my entire life, and all of the sudden it’s there. But, ‘Don’t worry, it has nothing to do with the toxic chemicals,’” he said.
Mohawk Valey Joint Fire District via Storful
After being asked what he would say to Buttigieg or President Joe Biden, the East Palestine resident said, “Pete Buttigieg, you should step down. That’s the truth. You’re not very good at your job at all. In fact, you stink.”
“Biden, the truth is, Biden’s not really there. We know that,” he added. “It’s like Weekend at Bernie’s with him. So, Biden, whatever.”
On February 3, a train operated by Norfolk Southern was carrying chemicals — including vinyl chloride, a highly volatile colorless gas produced for commercial uses — when it derailed, spilling the chemicals. A fire was also sparked, sending thick billowing smoke into the sky.
Additionally, about half of the town’s population was ordered to evacuate following the train derailment, but they have since been told it is safe to return home.
Cleanup crews also ignited five train cars to get rid of toxic, flammable chemicals in a controlled environment, which created a dark plume of smoke, resulting in images that circulated across social media, sparking concerns around the nation.
A black plume rises over East Palestine, Ohio, as a result of the controlled detonation of a portion of the derailed Norfolk and Southern trains Monday, Feb. 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Meanwhile, Buttigieg appears to be prioritizing other issues.
On Monday, he suggested that there are too many white people working in construction while speaking at the National Association of Counties Conference, where he urged attendees to “really work with organized labor, to work with your contractors, to work with your community colleges on holding a workforce that reflects the community.”
As for his comments on the issue of East Palestine, the Transportation Secretary blamed former President Donald Trump for the train derailment, saying, “We’re constrained by law on some areas of rail regulation.”
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
