"Lots more information in the thread - pics, vids, articles. The thread might end up being deleted because Twitter does that shit all the time, so save the info. Heres some of it:
That's a giant cloud of [vinyl chloride] and a ton of other bad chemicals. The local police blew it up like a beached whale, now megatoxins are Chernobyling Ohio and there's a news blackout and the police are beating reporters and camera people and dragging em. This environmental devastation will be visible from space for decades. The water is safe to drink but everything in it is suddenly dead. The next town over, the release instantly killed everyone's chickens. This stuff is catnip for human cancer. This will cast a massive acid rain shadow and destroy swaths of vegetation, leaving a path of ruin that will appear as if God himself took his thumb and smudged it over Ohio, Pennsylvania, and beyond."
They performed a “controlled burn” which is a stupid idea. Basically they wanted to avoid the substances leaking in the river, so they decided to turn it all into acid rain with a dose of toxicity. When vinyl chloride burns, it turns into chlorine gas (also known by its WW1 weaponization name, mustard gad). Chlorine gas, when mixed with water, turns into hydrochloric acid. Which then comes down with the rain and at these concentrations, it can utterly destroy marine ecosystems (can’t handle the pH - why all those fish were floating dead), soil structure (lowers fertility for years), and corrodes plants and trees severely. The real kicker is that vinyl chloride has a really low boiling point. So when you try to burn it, a good amount will not actually burn but it will evaporate (turn into vinyl chloride gas). This gas is heavy and will linger at high concentrations near the surface (where, you know, most living things, including humans, live and breathe). This is what makes for that low, thick, dense cloud cover over the area. This stuff is quite toxic, and people who work with it are meant to be exposed to under 1 part per million per hour to stay safe. So, you know… Great job whoever presides over this mess!
And for the cherry on top. They later found out there were other, more toxic, chemicals in there that weren’t supposed to be burned.
They performed a “controlled burn” which is a stupid idea. Basically they wanted to avoid the substances leaking in the river, so they decided to turn it all into acid rain with a dose of toxicity.
Let’s be real. They didn’t give a damn about that river either. They just wanted those mangled traincars off the track so Norfolk Southern could resume operations ASAP. The only thought which occurred to them was “what is the fastest way to get this thing out of here?” So they opted for the Florence, Oregon beached whale removal strategy.
They performed a “controlled burn” which is a stupid idea. Basically they wanted to avoid the substances leaking in the river, so they decided to turn it all into acid rain with a dose of toxicity. When vinyl chloride burns, it turns into chlorine gas (also known by its WW1 weaponization name, mustard gad). Chlorine gas, when mixed with water, turns into hydrochloric acid. Which then comes down with the rain and at these concentrations, it can utterly destroy marine ecosystems (can’t handle the pH - why all those fish were floating dead), soil structure (lowers fertility for years), and corrodes plants and trees severely. The real kicker is that vinyl chloride has a really low boiling point. So when you try to burn it, a good amount will not actually burn but it will evaporate (turn into vinyl chloride gas). This gas is heavy and will linger at high concentrations near the surface (where, you know, most living things, including humans, live and breathe). This is what makes for that low, thick, dense cloud cover over the area. This stuff is quite toxic, and people who work with it are meant to be exposed to under 1 part per million per hour to stay safe. So, you know… Great job whoever presides over this mess!
And for the cherry on top. They later found out there were other, more toxic, chemicals in there that weren’t supposed to be burned.
Let’s be real. They didn’t give a damn about that river either. They just wanted those mangled traincars off the track so Norfolk Southern could resume operations ASAP. The only thought which occurred to them was “what is the fastest way to get this thing out of here?” So they opted for the Florence, Oregon beached whale removal strategy.
You are absolutely right!
jesus christ so they just dispersed the pollution even further
As someone else said, preventing pollution was probably just pretext. They most likely did it to clear the tracks quickly.
oh god. that makes sense