Officials Announce Updated Plans for East Palestine First Responder Training Center

52675362301_f8eccd1761_k — Members of the Ohio National Guard’s 52nd Civil Support Team prepare to enter an incident area to assess and monitor public facilities for any potential remaining hazards with a lightweight inflatable decontamination system (LIDS) in East Palestine, Ohio, Feb. 7, 2023. The LIDS is used to contain any potential contamination that might occur within an incident area following a site assessment. The 52nd CST is supporting local and state authorities with incident assessments and monitoring of hazardous material following a Feb. 3 train derailment in East Palestine. (U.S. Air National Guard photos by Capt. Jordyn Craft, Ohio National Guard Public Affairs)

State and local officials have announced updated plans for a new first responder training facility in East Palestine, Ohio.

First announced by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine in the weeks following the 2023 Norfolk Southern train derailment and explosion in East Palestine, Norfolk Southern agreed to build a training center to help Ohio expand access to firefighter training, particularly for hazardous-material fires. Following Vice President J.D. Vance’s visit to East Palestine in January, and with the backing of DeWine, U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno, U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, and Rep. Mike Rulli, plans for the training facility were reimagined and enhanced to include higher education opportunities and to ensure the facility’s long-term viability.

Under a new agreement, Norfolk Southern will provide $20 million in funding to Youngstown State University to design and construct the new first-responder training center in East Palestine and to operate it as part of the university’s Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences and Forensic Science.

Conceptually, the facility design will include space for fire, police, and emergency medical services first responders, including volunteers, to train on various emergency scenarios, such as house, vehicle, and industrial fires; search and rescue; confined-space rescues; and agricultural rescues. East Palestine’s emergency response agencies will have free, priority access to the facility, which will also offer fire sciences curriculum and alternative workforce education pathways for Youngstown State University students.

The agreement also includes the creation of a long-term endowment plan to financially support the center’s continued operation and growth.