Norfolk Southern Corporation has launched the construction works for East Palestine regional training centre, company’s first responder training centre that will provide ongoing, free training for first responders from Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and the greater region.
The crentre will further strengthen coordination between railway companies and first responders and build upon the company’s Operation Awareness and Response (OAR) programme, which trains 5,000 first responders annually across its 22-state footprint.
“This training centre, and our previously expanded Operation Awareness and Response programme, will provide first responders across the region with essential training on how to respond to unlikely rail incidents,” Norfolk Southern Vice President of Safety John Fleps said.
The new centre will attract firefighters and first responders from the region, offering traditional fire service training to all first responders and specialized training for responding to rail and other transportation-related emergencies.
Norfolk Southern will invest at least USD 20 million for the East Palestine regional training centre in the next ten years. The centre will operate through a partnership with the Village of East Palestine, at no cost to the Village or taxpayers. It will establish a lasting presence in the region, promoting top-tier training for years to come. The centre is temporarily operating out of Norfolk Southern’s rail yard in Bellevue, Ohio, where more than 400 local emergency personnel have received training this year. Preliminary designs for the new facility are currently in development by architecture and engineering firm, Arcadis.
“Norfolk Southern is committed to setting the gold standard for safety in the rail industry, and first responders are critical to that mission. First responders are heroes, and we aim to ensure they have the training and expertise to do their jobs safely, no matter the situation. We are grateful to East Palestine’s leaders for partnering with us to make this training center a reality,” Norfolk Southern President and CEO Alan H. Shaw said.
Training opportunities at the center will include classroom, web-based, and online resources, table-top drills, full-scale emergency response exercises, and other specialised training opportunities.
Regional traffic to the centre, as a result of the investment, will also bring additional customers to area businesses.
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