Scientists release shock report showing ‘higher than normal’ concentrations of NINE potentially harmful chemicals – despite EPA ruling train derailment danger zone was ‘safe’

  • The finding is in direct contrast to the EPA’s, who said the air is safe for residents 
  • Texas A&M and Carnegie Mellon University scientists measured the air quality
  • They found ‘higher than normal’ levels of carcinogenic chemicals

Acrolein was calculated to be the biggest concern for residents, the Texas A&M and Carnegie Mellon University researchers found.

According to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, acrolein is either a clear, colorless gas or a pale yellow, strong-smelling liquid.

It evaporates easily at normal temperatures, producing toxic concentrations.

It is poisonous no matter what the exposure route is. It causes inflammation and irritation of the skin, respiratory tract and mucus membranes.

After it is inhaled, it can cause delayed pulmonary edema — excess fluid in the lungs.

This can lead to coughs, chest pain and fatigue.

It is formed when fossil fuels are burnt and is also a by-product of fires.

The other eight chemicals found to be at higher than normal average concentrations are: benzene, vinyl chloride, butadiene, naphthalene, o-Xylene, trichloroethylene, trichloroethane and butadiene.

Vinyl chloride is a colorless manmade gas which burns easily.

It is mainly used to make polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a hard plastic resin used to make plastic products including pipes and wire and cable exteriors.

PVC is not known or suspected to cause cancer, but vinyl chloride is associated with a higher risk of a rare form of liver cancer (hepatic angiosarcoma), as well as primary liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma), brain and lung cancers, lymphoma and leukemia.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) lists vinyl chloride as carcinogenic to humans, which means it has sufficient scientific proof that it causes cancer in people.

People who are exposed to vinyl chloride over many years are likely to get liver damage and cancer.

It will most likely enter someone’s body by breathing it in, but it can also be ingested via contaminated drinking water.

The chemical travels through the body in the blood and the liver, breaking it down into other chemicals, some of which can cause more damage than the vinyl chloride itself.

According to the CDC, the gas has a faint sweet odor, but the threshold at which it will smell is ‘too high to provide an adequate warning of hazardous concentrations’.

This means people can be overexposed to it without being aware it is even in the air.

A five-minute exposure to over twice the level it can be smelt at can cause dizziness.

At levels five times that high, exposure can cause drowsiness, a loss of coordination, issues with sight and hearing, disorientation, nausea, headache, and burning or tingling in the arms and legs.

Sustained exposure can lead to death due to the central nervous system shutting down. The gas is also found in tobacco smoke.

When burned or heated to a high enough temperature, the gas turns into hydrogen chloride, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and traces of phosgene.

Residents have been reporting symptoms ever since the derailment occurred at the start of the month.