The desperate fire chief of East Palestine, Ohio, said he felt 'defeated, useless and so angry,' in the wake of the train derailment, texts and emails obtained by DailyMail.com reveal.
Keith Drabick vented his frustration privately in messages following the February 3 crash which saw a toxic soup of carcinogenic and corrosive chemicals released into the community, resulting in an environmental and health crisis.
Text message exchanges show Drabick becoming increasingly aggravated, at one point expressing: 'Why does this have to be so hard?'
He admitted to having to take a moment because he was getting 'overwhelmed' with the conflicting responses to the disaster by officials, particularly, a leaflet campaign by the Federal Emergency Management Agency that he dubbed a 'ginormous s*** show'.
He also said he felt abandoned by Ohio's Republican governor Mike DeWine after he was left to 'sit by and watch s*** fall apart', and admitted he had 'lost faith' in the city's health department after it told him to treat the crash like a normal house fire.
Emails and text messages obtained by DailyMail.com reveal East Palestine fire chief Keith Drabick's frustration over officials' poor handling of the February 3 train wreck that sparked an environmental and health crisis in the community
Drabick became disgruntled with Ohio governor Mike DeWine's apparent lack of communication with local officials after he failed to inform the fire chief about a press conference on the derailment
The site of the disastrous Norfolk Southern derailment (pictured on February 19)became ground zero where a mixture of six highly toxic chemicals leached into the soil and water
The messages, released as part of a FOIA request, paint a vivid picture of how first responders handled the derailment of 38 carriages of the Norfolk Southern train as it made its way through the city.
Eleven of them were carrying hazardous chemicals like vinyl chloride and half of the 5,000 residents were evacuated as Norfolk Southern conducted a 'controlled burn'.
But according to a lawsuit filed by residents, this ended up releasing a chemical that had been banned after World War I and left them with headaches, coughing and burning feelings on their skin.
Dozens of fish were killed and residents fled the area amid fears their drinking water had become contaminated.
The accident led to Congressional hearings, calls for tighter freight safety laws, and an ongoing investigation into the crash by the National Transportation Safety Board, which is also investigating Norfolk Southern's safety practices.
The messages show the frustration of local officials who were overwhelmed by emails from cranks who sent conspiracy theories, well-wishers sending donations, and requests from the media for interviews.
As the weeks went by, federal agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency flooded officials' inboxes with contact sheets for their departments and demands for meetings.
Drabick had only been East Palestine's fire chief for a year when the crash occurred, though he has worked as a firefighter for decades.
The messages portray him as a straight talker who cares deeply about his community and was grappling with unimaginable conditions.
On February 7 – four days after the accident – Drabick addressed requests by residents to be allowed into the one mile evacuation zone that had been set up around the burn site to feed their pets.
He wrote: 'With the unknown level of contaminants I, with a heavy heart, made the decision to not allow any residents to enter or be escorted into the evacuation area to gain access to the pets they left behind'.
On February 7 - four days after the accident - Drabick was forced to give pets a death sentence when he refused to allow residents return home to feed them
Just days after the derailment, Drabick expressed empathy for Rick Gorby, a volunteer firefighter in East Palestine who had apologized for leaving a meeting early as he had 'a lot on my mind
The fire chief became increasingly frustrated with the poor communication among local and state officials. On February 14, Drabick said he 'wasn't aware' of a press conference by Governor DeWine that was taking place later that day
Drabick said he was contacted by an animal rescue organization, Angels For Animals, but he decided to 'stand firm' on the decision.
Two days later, Rick Gorby, a volunteer firefighter in East Palestine, apologized to Drabick for leaving a meeting early as he had 'a lot on my mind.'
Drabick replied: 'Please don't ever apologize for that, my friend. I went back down for a little bit after the news report and had to leave myself because I was starting to get overwhelmed. We all need a break'.
When Gorby says that he saw people on TV picketing the sheriff's office, Drabick replied: 'It's only gonna get worse.'
On February 14, Drabick said he 'wasn't aware' of a press conference by Governor DeWine that was taking place later that day.
It was the first sign of tensions with other agencies that became even worse as the weeks went on.
Two weeks later, Drabick and East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway expressed their shock at who was speaking for their city in Congress during the testimony of Norfolk Southern chief executive Alan Shaw.
Conaway shared a link to a Facebook post which talked about Jami Cozza and her partner, Chris Wallace, both residents of East Palestine, going to Washington.
Drabick wrote: 'That's what the village gets to represent us in DC. Isn't that just wonderful'.
Conaway replied: 'What the f***'
news5cleveland Privacy Policy
Residents had grown desperate and frustrated with the lack of guidance from authorities after many requested to be allowed into the one mile evacuation zone that had been set up around the site to feed their pets. Pictured: Local pet owner Donna Mineard
In an interview with local news station News 5 Cleveland, Mineard said she was willing to take the risk her health and safety to get her two cats that had been left behind at home
Drabick said he had been contacted by an animal rescue organization, Angels For Animals, that had offered to remove and rescue pets, but he decided to 'stand firm' on the decision
Drabick wrote: 'I can't believe that Brown is doing this', apparently referring to Democratic Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown, who spoke at the hearing.
He added: 'And not a damn thing we can do but sit by and watch s*** fall apart'.
Drabick also vented about the EPA, the federal agency which handled the cleanup and testing of air, water and soil quality.
In a February 25 message to a colleague he wrote: 'This is just bull****'.
Referring to one official Drabick said: 'Is it just me or is this guy so smart he's stupid?'
Later messages reveal he appears to be talking about Ralph Dollhopf, who was the EPA's On-Scene Coordinator.
In one message Drabick quipped: 'He is amazing at talking in circles and avoiding answering my questions'.
On March 3, Peggy Clark, the Columbiana County Emergency Management Agency Director, texted Drabick to say there was 'still no direction from anyone in health on how to advise the firefighter from West Point'.
Drabick asked what his symptoms were and Clark said: 'New diagnosis of asthma and bronchitis. Dr (doctor) told him definitely related to exposure. Never had breathing problems before'.
Drabick replied: 'Why does this have to be so hard', adding that they needed to 'nail down this soil sampling plan'.
An exasperated Drabick went on: 'I honestly don't even know what to say anymore Peggy. I truly feel defeated and useless'.
In a February 25 message to a colleague he wrote: 'This is just bulls***', and referred to one official, believed to be EPA on-scene coordinator Ralph Dollhopf, as 'so smart he's stupid'
A text exchange from March 3 shows Peggy Clark, the Columbiana County Emergency Management Agency Director, messaged Drabick to complain about the lack of help from the health department about a fire fighter who became sick from exposure
In the days to follow, Drabick expressed his frustration, saying 'why does this have to be so hard,' and later admitted to feeling 'defeated and useless'
Messages show tensions flared between local and federal agencies over the conflicting approaches in handling the disaster, with Drabick referring to FEMA's campaign as a 'ginormous s**t show'
He also expressed apprehension about a meeting he had to attend that day was going to be 'absolutely horrible'.
'I can't even. I am so angry. Traci is ready to explode like you,' Drabick wrote, apparently referring Traci Spratt, the finance director of East Palestine.
As the conversation continued, Drabick wrote: 'Unbelievable'.
Addressing tensions with other agencies, he wrote: 'At what point are we going to be a unified command?'
Clark replied: 'Please say that' in an upcoming meeting to which Drabick responded: 'Oh I'm going to'.
After being sent the invitation to the meeting, Drabick wrote: 'Was that just basically a F@*k you from Ralph'.
Another argument blew up the next day in a message with Spratt.
Drabick wrote that FEMA, another federal agency that responded to the crash, was trying to take control of efforts to send leaflets to residents.
The agency was asking Clark to 'provide people to do this door to door along with civic groups from the village', Drabick said, adding: 'Exactly what we said not to do'.
He added: 'This ginormous s*** show over this handout has officially begun'.
The day before, Drabick was so frustrated about not getting adequate health advice for his fire crews from the East Palestine Health Department that he went straight to the CDC, the federal agency which handles pandemics and disease outbreaks.
Two weeks later, Drabick and East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway expressed their shock at who was speaking for their city in Congress during the testimony of Norfolk Southern chief executive Alan Shaw
Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, left, on May 2
Norfolk Southern Corporation President and CEO, Alan Shaw, testified before a US Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works hearing on the environmental and public health on March 20
He also contacted the National Development and Research Institutes USA, a nonprofit that specializes in federal research into public health.
In an email to the NDRI, Drabick wrote that during his last conversation with his local health department he was told to 'have my members treat this exposure the same I would as any other house or barn fire'.
He wrote: 'I have lost all faith in our local health department. I would prefer not to deal with the local health department any further.'
Drabick added that he had 'purposely' not put one official from the health department on the email to leave him 'out of the loop'.
NDRI official Sara Jahnke replied: 'I'm sorry this has been your experience'.
The frustration continued into the next week and on March 12, Drabick was discussing soil samples.
He wrote that the governor of Oklahoma had 'refused to accept the soil so we are back to square one'.
Reports at the time said that Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt blocked the EPA's plan to ship 3,640 tons of toxic waste to a hazardous waste facility in the state.
It has now been nearly four months since the accident and East Palestine is still recovering – with the fallout showing no signs of slowing down.
The frustration continued into the week of March 12, as Drabick was discussing soil samples. He wrote that the governor of Oklahoma had 'refused to accept the soil so we are back to square one'
Photos and firsthand accounts shared previously with DailyMail.com lay bare the devastating impact of the East Palestine train derailment disaster that saw a toxic soup of carcinogenic and corrosive chemicals light up the night sky on February 3
Vinyl chloride is known to migrate through soil and has been linked with various forms of liver cancer, lymphoma, leukemia as well as brain and lung cancer
On Wednesday a Senate committee voted in favor of train safety legislation that would set new standards for the freight rail industry.
Sen. Maria Cantwell said: 'No community should have to go through the trauma and evacuation and environmental damage that East Palestine had to go through, especially when you can prevent these from happening'.
This week Norfolk Southern reiterated its pledge to pay homeowners near the affected area.
The company says it has accrued charges of almost $400 million for the derailment, but that amount doesn't include expected costs for funds tied to falling property values, long term health care or water treatment.
And on Wednesday several railcars from a Norfolk Southern train derailed in New Castle, Pennsylvania, about 30 minutes from East Palestine.
None of them were carrying hazardous materials and nobody was injured.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pa3IpbCmmZmhe6S7ja6iaKaVrMBwrdGtoJyklWJ%2Bc3yWcGdwa1%2BJsrnA0mapnq6VlrlukcCsq2aIkaGytMDIp5xmnpmnsm6vx6Kcn6tdm7%2B2v9OrmK2hn6N6ra3CpGSanKaesKZ5x56YpayYYrynssicoJqko2O1tbnL