Aftermath of Norfolk Southern’s February 2023 derailment and chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio. NTSB image
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East Palestine resident Jess Conard became an expert on rail safety “the hard way.” In an opinion column that was published in The Hill in December 2025, the East Palestine, Ohio resident sounded an alarm that Congress has yet to pass rail safety reform three years after the fiery derailment in Conard’s hometown that captured the public’s attention.
“The scars — physical, emotional and economic — remain today, along with a sense of fear and disappointment that more hasn’t been done to prevent the next train derailment disaster,” she wrote.
In the aftermath of the derailment, Conard founded a rail safety service called Rail Watch designed to assist community leaders who are facing rail-related threats. Conard’s full column, titled “Without railway reform, your town could be the next East Palestine,” can be found here.