The photos are horrifying: a monstrous black pillar of smoke, towering over a town. Workers in HAZMAT suits. Zig-zagged train cars toppled. About 20 of the 150 railcars that crashed were listed as carrying hazardous materials. But despite chemicals like vinyl chloride, butyl acrylate, ethylhexyl acrylate, and ethylene glycol monobutyl, the train was not considered a high hazard by the federal government. Norfolk Southern didn’t have to warn the state of Ohio. Now that chemicals have polluted the air and leached into storm drains, creeks and the Ohio River, Ohio officials are demanding change. - Laura |
Overnight Scores and Weather |
Northeast Ohio Wednesday weather forecast: Windy and warmer |
|
|
Gov. Mike DeWine speaks during a news conference in Columbus on Tuesday giving an update on the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff, director of the Ohio Department of Health, stands behind him. (Jeremy Pelzer, cleveland.com) |
|
|
Train derailment: State officials said Tuesday air-quality testing indicates that the chemicals spilled and burned from a train that derailed near East Palestine last week don’t pose a major health hazard. Jeremy Pelzer reports that air quality has returned to levels seen before the derailment, and water testing has shown a couple of the chemicals remain in some streams, though there doesn’t appear to be any increase in fish or aquatic creatures killed since the first couple of days. Reading wars: Gov. Mike DeWine is wading into the decades-long debate over how to teach children to read. Laura Hancock reports DeWine’s budget proposal contains $162 million over the next two years for the “science of reading” camp that requires students to break down words into parts and sound them out. Ohio State University has been an epicenter of the approach to reading instruction that DeWine wants to get away from – known as “balanced literacy” or “whole language.” Today in Ohio: Last week’s East Palestine train derailment released three other hazardous chemicals into the environment besides the vinyl chloride that officials preemptively set afire, according to federal environmental regulators. We’re talking about the chemicals the U.S. EPA say were released in the air, soil, and/or surface waters on Today in Ohio, cleveland.com’s daily half-hour news podcast. |
|
|
Householder trial: An Ohio lobbyist told jurors Tuesday that he and others working on behalf of FirstEnergy Solutions knew about a “black ops” plan to bribe a worker on the campaign trying to repeal House Bill 6. Jake Zuckerman and Andrew Tobias report from the trial. Householder's lawyers sought to undermine the testimony. Also Tuesday, a lobbyist testified that FirstEnergy Solutions executive John Kiani stood to personally gain $100 million from the sale of two nuclear plants, and Kiani needed the bailout in HB6 to entice buyers. And prosecutors want jurors to hear about deleted records as part of their larger strategy. Great Lakes: U.S. Sen. JD Vance will co-chair the Senate’s Great Lakes Task Force, replacing his predecessor Rob Portman. Sabrina Eaton reports Vance cited cooperation on Great Lakes issues as one area where Washington can drop its partisan rancor. He said he plans to be “an ambassador and outward facing person" for a lot of the economic development that happens in the Great Lakes. Cryptocurrency: U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown used Super Bowl ads to document cryptocurrency’s implosion at a Tuesday hearing of the U.S. Senate Committee on Housing Banking and Urban Affairs. Sabrina Eaton reports last year, cryptocurrency interests spent “a whopping $54 million on eight ads, promising Americans untold riches and the chance to make history." |
|
|
Budget debate: Policing, violence prevention, homes in disrepair, public schools, and economic development plans across city neighborhoods were among the topics that were top of mind Tuesday during Cleveland City Council’s first day of 2023 budget hearings. Courtney Astolfi reports council members spent four-and-a-half hours in a back-and-forth with Mayor Justin Bibb, seeking the logic behind his budget requests, including plans to eliminate 142 vacant police positions that the city has failed for years to fill. Algal bloom: Ohio and Michigan are behind their goals of reducing phosphorus runoff into Lake Erie and significant changes are needed to attack the problem, according to a new study led by the Alliance for the Great Lakes and the Ohio Environmental Council. Peter Krouse reports the study says that based on the current rate of funding and adoption of conservation practices, “there is no pathway for Michigan and Ohio to meet the 40% nonpoint source phosphorus reduction goal." PFAS: Ohio will get nearly $46.5 million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law money to safeguard against so-called forever chemicals in drinking water across the state, reports Peter Krouse. The money will be used to “promote access to safe and clean water in small, rural, and disadvantaged communities while supporting local economies.” NASA Glenn: Both of Ohio’s U.S. Senators and many of its House of Representatives members outlined their 2024 spending priorities for Cleveland’s NASA Glenn Research Center in a Tuesday letter to President Joe Biden, Sabrina Eaton reports. Historic home: Wilson Bruce Evans was an Oberlin businessman and abolitionist who assisted escaping slaves on their route to Canada. He was also Black, which made his tale even more unusual. Now the Wilson Bruce Evans Home Historical Society is leading an effort to restore the house, built in 1854, and open it to the public, reports Susan Glaser. Project 400: In the wake of the fatal shootings of George Floyd, Tyre Nichols, Akron’s Jayland Walker and other Black Americans by law enforcement, Cleveland State University is focusing this year’s Project 400 conference on racism as a public health crisis. Julie Washington reports that during the Feb. 24-25 conference, local and national speakers will address the impact of racism on mental health, redlining, the repeal of Roe v. Wade and other challenges facing Black Americans. East Cleveland property: After clawing back plans to sell the former adult activity center in East Cleveland to a controversial owner and then rebidding the project, Cuyahoga County has selected a new owner. Kaitlin Durbin reports County Council is considering selling the former Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities property on Euclid Avenue to Genesis Global Holding for retail space, a community center, potential grocery store and, eventually, up to 250 affordable housing units. |
|
|
Hough development: A real estate development company has plans to reinvigorate Cleveland’s Hough Neighborhood with the recent purchase of the Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza. Northern Real Estate Urban Ventures, a Washington D.C.-based real estate development company, plans to build 149 multi-family units, 7,500 square feet of commercial space and 6,700 square feet of live/work space, Megan Sims reports. Breeze: Breeze Airways will start flying between the Akron-Canton Airport and Norfolk, Virginia, starting in June. Susan Glaser reports the flight will be seasonal, running on Thursdays and Sundays, from June 1 through Sept. 5. Home sales: The cleveland.com database of home sales and other property transfer details has been updated with transactions for January 2023. Search the home sales database at this link for all transfers since 2019. |
|
|
Clinic alert: Shots were fired after a car crash at East 96th Street and Euclid Avenue, prompting a security alert on the Cleveland Clinic main campus Tuesday. Initial reports characterized the incident as road rage, reports Molly Walsh. Wrong arrest: A federal lawsuit claims a series of missteps led Cleveland police to arrest the wrong man in a domestic violence case, reports Adam Ferrise. Mark Williams Jr., who had never before been arrested and had never met the victim in the case, ended up in the Cuyahoga County Jail after the suit says Cleveland police failed on several occasions to verify the difference between him and a person with the same name who was accused in the case. Questionable arrest: A Cleveland police sergeant, Lance Henderson, illegally detained and arrested an armed Black man who was conducting a civilian patrol of neighborhoods following a spate of crimes, a city oversight board unanimously ruled Tuesday. The Cleveland Civilian Review Board ruled in the case of Antoine Tolbert, a community organizer who spent a night in jail following his arrest last May, John Tucker reports. Murder charge: A man accused in the slaying of his child’s mother and the kidnapping of his daughter surrendered to authorities on Monday. Olivia Mitchell reports Joshua Lynch, 35, of Cleveland, was wanted in connection with the death of Jovon Lynch, 34. |
|
|
New Orleans: Laura Johnston went to New Orleans to experience a singular American city, to eat seafood po’ boys and hear music and experience Cajun culture in the early spring Southern greenery. She writes that her best friendship survives because of annual trips south. Best golf courses: Whether you are a duffer or ready to launch your pro career, a challenging course can be found within the borders of your home state. Yadi Rodriguez and Brenda Cain list the 25 best golf courses in Ohio, a blend of public and private courses. Rolling Stones: Though no announcement has been made, there are strong rumors the Rolling Stones will be touring North America again this summer and Cleveland is on a speculative list of dates on often-reliable fan site iorr.org, reports John Benson. Chicks tour: The Chicks -- the multi-platinum-selling country pop trio of Martie Maguire, Natalie Maines and Emily Strayer -- are hitting the road again this summer, bringing their ongoing world tour to Nationwide Arena in Columbus on Aug. 16, reports Malcolm X Abram. Karl’s Inn: On March 22, Karl Abounader will walk out the door of the venerable courthouse restaurant, Karl’s Inn of the Barristers, one last time. Paris Wolfe reports he’ll host one more St. Patrick’s Day celebration and a goodbye party on March 18. Much-awaited movies: The 2023 movie calendar is full of big-budget spectacles, sequels and, yes, even some original fare, too. Joey Morona has 50 of the most anticipated releases -- mostly theatrical but some streaming -- for the coming year. |
|
|
Akron police investigate armed robbery of Dollar General clerk Read more Ashtabula County man accused of raping child found hiding in Florida forest Read more Two bodies found in Lake Erie identified as missing fishermen Read more Shaker Heights mayor, new police chief issue strong rebuke of murder in Memphis Read more ‘It makes my heart happy;’ 7 couples married on Valentine’s Day 2023 at Crocker Park (photos) Read more North Royalton Schools to pay $195,000 for new locker rooms, bus garage renovation, parking lot repairs Read more Cleveland Heights moves toward environmental cleanup, demolition of old Hillside Dairy Read more Cleveland Heights coming down the home stretch on the Cedar-Lee-Meadowbrook project Read more |
|
|
NEW! POLICE BLOTTER NEWSLETTER |
Get the latest police blotter headlines from Northeast Ohio communities every weekday morning. Click here to sign up. |
|
|
Want the top headlines but don't have time to read? Listen to cleveland.com’s Today in Ohio podcast on Spotify, Google or Apple Podcasts. |
|
|
WANT TO SHARE THIS NEWSLETTER WITH A FRIEND? |
Did someone share this newsletter with you? Click here to never miss a day! |
|
|
To contact the newsrooms for any of our publications regarding technical support, news tips, classified ads and other inquiries, please click here. |
|
|
Special Offer Cleveland.com Unlimited Digital Access. |
|
|
Start today for $1 (cancel anytime) |
| |
|
Start today for $1 (cancel anytime) |
| |
|
INTERESTED IN ADVERTISING
OR SPONSORING OUR NEWSLETTERS? |
|
|
You received this email because you opted in to the newsletter. To ensure receipt of our emails, please add newsletters@update.cleveland.com to your address book or safe sender list. 4800 Tiedeman Road, Brooklyn OH 44144 Contact us | Unsubscribe | Privacy Policy |
|
|
|
