EAST PALESTINE, Ohio – The village will receive $22 million from Norfolk Southern Corp., but a proposed $20 million regional safety training center for first responders has been scrapped.

A news release late Monday announced an agreement on all the remaining claims stemming from the Feb. 3, 2023, train derailment in the village.

The settlement provides $22 million for the village for whatever priorities it identifies as needed as connected with the derailment. It also acknowledges that Norfolk Southern has already paid $13.5 million directly to the village, which went for the replacement of fire and police equipment and vehicles, improvements to the village’s water treatment plant and exterior renovations to the historic train depot that sits along Norfolk Southern’s railroad tracks near the intersection of North Market Street.

The settlement also reaffirms Norfolk Southern has committed $25 million to the ongoing improvements to East Palestine City Park, which are currently behind schedule. It was recently announced at a Village Council meeting that the renovations will not be completed in time for the swimming pool to open for summer 2025.

Norfolk Southern and the village mutually agreed that the creation and operation of the proposed regional safety training center in the village is not feasible and will not proceed. Norfolk Southern has agreed to transfer the ownership of about 15 acres, which were acquired for the center, for another use as determined by the village. Training of safety forces will continue elsewhere in the region.

The training center was slated to be built next to the railroad tracks on Edgewood Avenue at the former Jasar Recycling industrial building and property, located west of downtown and along the tracks. When it was announced with a groundbreaking in September 2023, it was touted as a way for first responders to receive training locally and for the railroad and emergency responders to be on the same page during hazmat accidents in the future. 

The training center was also expected to bring economic development to the village, with first responders from throughout the Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia region traveling to East Palestine for training programs there.

Less than a month ago, fire Chief Keith Drabick had reported at a Village Council meeting that the training center was still in the plans.

The settlement is separate from the $600 million class-action settlement for residents within a 20-mile radius of the village, which in many cases remains unpaid as appeals are being litigated.

Pictured at top: This photo taken with a drone on Feb. 4, 2023, shows portions of a Norfolk Southern freight train that derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, on Feb. 3. (AP Photo | Gene J. Puskar, File)