On Feb. 3, 2023, a Norfolk Southern freight train carrying hazardous materials derailed after a railcar's wheel bearing overheated, causing a fire. Three days later, officials conducted a "controlled release" of several tank cars that were filled with vinyl chloride, a toxic and flammable gas that can cause certain cancers, to prevent an explosion.

We are in it for the long haul in East Palestine,” Vance, a former US senator from Ohio, said in remarks from the town’s fire station.

Vice President JD Vance, his wife and multiple officials are visiting the small Ohio village on its two-year anniversary of the toxic Norfolk Southern train derailment.