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EAST PALESTINE -- The Unity Council for the East Palestine Train Derailment along with River Valley Organizing and citizens impacted by the Norfolk Southern train derailment in Florida went to Columbus Wednesday to urge Gov. Mike DeWine to stop stalling and declare an emergency.
Without an emergency declaration, residents said they will miss federal relief needed in the wake of the rail disaster.
"If Gov. DeWine does not declare an emergency, we will continue to suffer. We have been suffering for four and a half months already," said Jami Wallace, a East Palestine resident and member of the Unity Council. "We are demanding that Gov. DeWine declares this an emergency now. Not tomorrow. Not in another 120 days. We need help now. We are suffering and we need our government."
DeWine has yet to request a declaration of emergency from the Biden administration for East Palestine and surrounding areas. On Tuesday, he requested another extension from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. His first 120-day extension is set to expire July 3, a date that will mark five months since the rail disaster.
As the five-month anniversary approaches, residents like Zsuzsa Gyenes and Ashley McCollum are still living in hotels with their families.
"Every day we are reminded of this nightmare when we wake up in a hotel. We are reminded that we don't have anywhere to go," McCollum said. "The worst thing I heard was from my 6-year-old who said on Mother's Day 'I am sorry I couldn't get you a new house so we could have a home again.' We need help now. We need someone to do the right thing. Dewine needs to do the right thing. Biden needs to do the right thing."
Gyenes said she will likely walk away from her home. Both her and her son are autoimmune compromised. She said they are already experiencing health effects from the derailment and she refuses to take a risk of living in her home again despite the financial ruin she faces. Others, she said, have no other choice but to remain in the homes she called "poisoned."
"At the end of the day, materials can be replaced. Family members cannot," she said. "Gov. DeWine and President Biden need to declare immediately and get every American citizen out of the affected areas. We need permanent relocation, not chemically-laden homes or cramped expensive hotels. We have received zero long-term assurance from anyone about anything. Ohio has a responsibility to protect its people."
According to FEMA, an emergency declaration would provide "supplement state and local government efforts in providing emergency services, such as the protection of lives, property, public health and safety, or to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe in any part of the United States" with the total amount of assistance provided to "not exceed $5 million." Technically, DeWine cannot make the declaration. That power is reserved by the president, but for Biden to do so, DeWine must make a request to Biden.
The group protested in the Rotunda in the Capitol and marched to DeWine's offices.
"This declaration will unlock vital resources for the community, expedite assistance and provide the necessary framework for a swift and effective response that is so needed," East Palestine resident Misti Allison said. "Let us remind our governor that his duty is to serve the people of Ohio and to safeguard our lives, our homes and our environment. We demand he takes immediate action by declaring an emergency in East Palestine."
River Valley Co-executive Director Daniel Winston said both organizations will return to Columbus to advocate for East Palestine and the other impacted areas until the needs of the communities are met.
"We believe since the politicians weren't coming to us, we were going to come to them," he said. "And we are going to keep coming back to the state capitol and keep coming back to Gov. DeWine's office. People are still sick, people are still hurt and people are being financially crippled."