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Chickens were found dead after residents returned to affected areas.

Two weeks ago, a train carrying hazardous chemicals experienced a severe derailment in the vicinity of East Palestine, Ohio. These chemicals spilled out from the train, resulting in both spillage into local rivers and a massive cloud of toxic gas. East Palestine locals were warned to evacuate the area, and have only just returned this week.

For many of these residents, they were greeted by the sight of dead livestock upon their return. Owners of chicken enclosures found their animals dead, while onlookers spotted numerous dead fish in the river. Residents have become concerned that the local agriculture has been contaminated by the chemicals, causing exposure in people and animals who breathe the air or drink the water.

“They only evacuated only 1 mile from that space, and that’s just insane to me,” Ohio local Jenna Giannios told told NBC affiliate WPXI of Pittsburgh. “I’m concerned with the long-term heath impact. It’s just a mess.”

OHIO 🚨 Woman finds all her chickens dead 10 miles from East Palestine, Ohio#OhioTrainDisaster #OhioRiver pic.twitter.com/UgH6i2M2CF

— Melissa 🇨🇦 (@MelissaLMRogers) February 14, 2023

“We could see the plume come up and over us,” said Lisa Marie Sopko, founder of Kindred Spirits Rescue Ranch in nearby Darlington, Pennsylvania. “Our eyes were burning, and my face could feel it.”

The Ohio Farm Bureau Federation is urging all local farmers and livestock owners to to retrieve water samples from their wells for testing purposes. “The biggest concern is the water table at this point, to see what kind of exposure there has been to these chemicals,” said the bureau’s organizing director, Nick Kennedy.