EAST PALESTINE – As his community continues to recover from the Feb. 3 train wreck and chemical spill, Father David Misbrener, pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish here, sees the situation with gratitude, concern and hope.
“I’m still grateful that there was no loss of life” nor homes destroyed, said Father Misbrenner, who is also pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes’ sister parish, Columbiana St. Jude.
“If the wreck had happened in Columbiana, Salem, or even more in the center of East Palestine, there could have been serious loss of life and houses destroyed.”
Still, the parish is trying to respond to people’s needs and is concerned about long term consequences.
“I’m just hoping this is not going to be another Love Canal,” Father Misbrener said, alluding to a 36-block section in Niagara Falls, N.Y., which contained a landfill that became a huge environmental disaster in the 1970s.
A Norfolk Southern freight train’s 38 cars derailed in East Palestine, igniting a massive fire that damaged an additional 12 cars. The flames continued until Feb. 8, according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reports.
Twenty of the freight cars were carrying hazardous materials, with 11 of them having derailed, according to the National Transportation Safety Board, which is reportedly investigating to find the cause.
“It will be a long time before the community feels secure in their surroundings,” Father Misbrener said. Numerous local, state and federal agencies have been working to address the wreck.
Still, “despite all of the cleanup,” Father Misbrener noted, “we’re learning now how dangerous those chemicals are.” He cited the estimated death of more than 3,000 fish.
“We’ve had assurances from the EPA” that the situation is contained, Father Misbrener said, “but it’s too early to tell.”
“I’ve been careful not to politicize the whole thing. I just want to do what we need to do – proclaiming the Gospel and providing assistance for those in need.”
Toward that end, Father Misbrener explained, the parish has “a distribution center providing bottled water, diapers, food, cleaning supplies.” Diocesan Catholic Charities has donated much of the material.
In addition, Patty Zocolo, director of the apostolate for Our Lady of Lourdes, said that other parishes, other Churches, Knights of Columbus councils, and others have stepped up to donate supplies.
“I have a pickup truck and transported the donations,” Zocolo said. “I carried five full loads.”
On Feb. 18, the parish made a special effort to give out bottled water, Zocolo said. “Ninety percent of the bottled water was distributed,” but additional donations came in from Catholic Charities to restock their supplies.
On that same day, the parish had a community meal, Zocolo said. “We do it monthly and it’s not just for the poor,” Zocolo said, but for anyone who wants a meal. “Normally we get 100 to 110 coming for the meal.”
For this month’s meal, 230 people were served including about 65 police, fire, and other first responders, she noted.
“We wanted to be sure that the first responders got a meal,” Father Misbrener said.
Zocolo said that at a time of such uncertainty, serving a meal of chicken, mashed potatoes, and corn with plenty of desserts can help ease people’s anxieties.
Father Misbrener pointed out that Our Lady of Lourdes is about a quarter of a mile from the site of the crash and was in the original evacuation zone.
“Bishop (David) Bonnar was the first to call me,” offering prayers and support. Mass was cancelled for that first Sunday two days after the wreck,
“We missed only the one Sunday when the evacuation was ordered,” Father Misbrener said. The church was able to reopen in time for its feast day Mass Feb. 10.
For the Feast Day, Father Misbrener – in keeping with tradition – administered the anointing of the sick, a gesture that took on new significance. “It calmed people’s nerves.”
The parish, Father Misbrener said, will continue to serve the people spiritually amid the uncertainty as well as trying to help with material needs.
“We would welcome any donations,” Father Misbrener said. “And we ask people to continue to keep us in prayer.”
