There are lots of new developments related to last month's Norfolk-Southern Railway train derailment in East Palestine to report today, as well as other Norfolk-Southern related news that shines a light on what may have been going on inside that company in the months before the crash. 

Here are some of the highlights.

• Police say the truck that drove out onto the tracks at a steelyard in Cleveland early yesterday morning, had stopped at a stop sign, before it hit a Norfolk-Southern train. Norfolk-Southern Conductor, Louis Shuster, who had been positioned outside the train, died as a result of the collision.
• Bloomberg News reports that six months before the Norfolk-Southern derailment and toxic chemical release in East Palestine, a union representing Norfolk Southern employees here in Ohio, warned federal regulators that the railroad repeatedly disregarded its own safety rules for screening trains. In their complaint to the Federal Railroad Administration, the employees alleged the railroad had disregarded internal company rules requiring trains hauling hazardous materials be stopped and inspected in certain cases where track-side sensors, known as defect detectors, aren’t working properly. And, those same sensors are a focus in the investigation into the derailment in East Palestine.

• The National Transportation Safety Board is now investigating Norfolk-Southern railroad, after a series of derailments and other accidents, including the one in East Palestine. In fact, the derailment in East Palestine was the fourth one in Ohio, in the past five months. The others occurred in Steubenville, Sandusky, and Springfield.

• Norfolk-Southern C-E-O, Alan Shaw, says his company will fully cooperate with the investigation. This, just as Shaw is set to testify tomorrow before the US Senate in Washington, about potential threats to public health and the environment from the East Palestine derailment.

In their latest report on the derailment, the Ohio Emergency Management Agency reports the following:

• At the site of the East Palestine crash, the excavation of contaminated soil at the derailment site continues removal continues. The Ohio EPA reports that contractors are making good progress, and soil has been removed down to the clay in about 50 percent of the area. They also say that 3.6 million gallons of liquid wastewater have been hauled out of East Palestine, so far.
• Farmers in the area are concerned that their fields may have been contaminated, and although the Ohio Department of Agriculture currently has no reason to believe that crops planted in soil in the area of East Palestine are not safe for consumption; the agency will host a roundtable discussion with East Palestine area farmers tomorrow (Thursday, March 9) to discuss concerns about the upcoming planting season.
• Efforts to protect the health of area residents continue, with The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) awarding $250,000 in emergency funding to the Community Action Agency of Columbiana County to help support emergency response efforts and follow-up care for people affected by the derailment. The funding will support key response activities, including direct health care services, patient screenings, outreach, and enrollment.
• Because traumatic events, such as the train derailment, can cause intense stress, anxiety, and worry; local certified professionals are onsite at the East Palestine Mobile Health Clinic and are ready to assist anyone who has questions or concerns. In addition, they can call the Ohio CareLine at 1-800-720-9616 anytime for free, confidential, emotional support from a trained professional.

For more details on what is going on in East Palestine, click here, to read the latest report on the situation from the Ohio Emergency Management Agency.

The Student Athlete of the Week segment is powered by NECA-IBEW and Akron Children’s Hospital. 

This week's athletes are from Manchester High School.

Jaydyn McKinney is a junior wrestler with a 3.678 GPA. She has a 15-0 record going into states (14 pins 1 technical fall). Jaydyn finished in 1st place in the Columbia Station Girls Tournament, the Carrollton Lady Warrior Tournament, and the Northeast Regional. She won the state title last year and is looking to get another one this weekend. Jaydyn was also a key contributor on the girl's soccer team, who made the Final Four this past season. 

Evan Kusmits is a sophomore wrestler with a 3.975 GPA. He has a 30-7 record and is going into the state tournament this weekend. Evan has finished in 1st place in the Waterloo D3 Classic, the PAC-7 league Tournament, and the North East Sectional Tournament. Evan excels in football, wrestling, and track. He has a twin brother, Trevor, and they are both coached in wrestling by their father, Andy Kusmits.