Using an Electronic Self-Administered Survey Among First Responders to Evaluate the Potential Human Health Effects of Hazardous Substances Released as a Result of a Train Derailment Incident-East Palestine, Ohio, USA, February-March 2023.

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, 2025, v. 19: Using an Electronic Self-Administered Survey Among First Responders to Evaluate the Potential Human Health Effects of Hazardous Substances Released as a Result of a Train Derailment Incident-East Palestine, Ohio, USA, February-March 2023.
• Journal Article:
  Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness
• Personal Author:
  Crisp, Carolyn A. ; Parasram, Vidisha D. ; Shi, Dallas S. ; Omari, Amel ; Madera-Garcia, Valerie ; Faherty, Emily A.G. ; Dulcey, Melissa ; Burr, Kathryn ; Gichuhi, Beatrice ; Goldsworthy, Lisa A. ; Dowell, Chad H. ; Chiu, Sophia K. ; Dickerson, Kristen ; Dewart, Courtney M. ; Watkins, Sharon M. ; Harduar-Morano, Laurel ; Babich, Remy ; Shugart, Jill ; Orr, Maureen F.
• Description:
  To understand the potential human health effects of exposure to hazardous substances among first responders from the East Palestine train derailment, an electronic self-administered Assessment of Chemical Exposures (ACE) survey was created and available to first responders between February-March 2023. Among the 339 completed responder surveys analyzed, most reported working at least 1 day during the incident between February 3-8, 2023. Most (79%) reported inhaling, touching, or swallowing potentially harmful substances and did not report using a face mask or respirator while working (75%). Nearly half reported at least 1 new or worsening physical symptom after incident response. These findings support several recommendations to mitigate exposure to hazardous substances among first responders during future incidents, including using a hierarchy of controls framework to reduce exposure to hazards, timely communication of possible hazardous substances involved in the event, and using the Emergency Responder Health Monitoring Surveillance (ERHMS) framework.
• Content Notes:
  Author manuscript
• Subjects:
  • Humans
  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Male
  • Adult
  • Hazardous Substances
  • Emergency Responders
  • Female
  • Railroads
  • Middle Aged
  • Occupational Exposure
  More +
• Keywords:
  • first responders
  • personal protective equipment
  • chemical exposure
  • occupational health
  • Emergency Responder Health Monitoring Surveillance (ERHMS)
• Source:
  Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, 2025, v. 19
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.1017/dmp.2024.291
• ISSN:
  1935-7893 ; 1938-744X
• Pubmed ID:
  40399044
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC12628510
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  CC999999/ImCDC/Intramural CDC HHSUnited States/ ; TS/ATSDR CDC HHSUnited States/
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio
• Pages in Document:
  e121 (9 pdf pages)
• Volume:
  19
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/261400/cdc_261400_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 75.32 KB]
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:5f3d2bcba635f17f79e00364e0bc14c55a1e38e0e8d60c9e560933542a612adbd7dbf9bb77633ddc63cf30571ae3dbfa72d6000e483f660ce379e2fcf2408472