Saitas Mariana, Mustapha Toriq, Vitucci Eva, Oladeji Oladayo, Tsai Han-Hsuan D, Cannon Carolyn, Rusyn Ivan, Presto Albert A, Chiu Weihsueh A, Johnson Natalie M
Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Interdisciplinary Faculty of Toxicology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843, USA.
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA.
Environ Monit Assess. 2025 Apr 26;197(5):597. doi: 10.1007/s10661-025-14038-x.
On February 3, 2023, a train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed in East Palestine, Ohio. Initial mobile air monitoring in mid-February 2023 revealed unique spatiotemporal patterns for a range of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). To determine long-term impacts on air quality, two follow up mobile air monitoring campaigns were carried out in March and April 2023 on public roadways using a proton transfer reaction time-of-flight mass spectrometer. This study aimed to characterize VOC distributions, identify hotspots, and characterize potential hazards. Concentrations of targeted VOCs benzene, toluene, and xylenes were lower overall in East Palestine in April compared to March. Overall, more compounds (n = 48) were identified using non-targeted analysis (NTA) in East Palestine in March compared with April (n = 30). Several of these VOCs were uniquely identified during March sampling, and among the commonly detected compounds, higher average concentrations were observed in East Palestine compared background levels. Spatial analysis revealed similar patterns of hotspots for benzene and additional VOCs identified from NTA, including CHO, CHO, and CHO. Using the EPA Hazard Comparison Dashboard, 49% and 40% of the identified VOCs were classified as "very high" or "high" hazards for eye and skin irritation, respectively. Notably, eye and skin irritation were among the common symptoms reported by the residents near the disaster site. Additionally, 29%, 18%, and 14% of the identified VOCs were classified as "very high" or "high" hazards for genotoxicity/mutagenicity, acute inhalation toxicity, and acute dermal toxicity, respectively. Collectively, these findings provide exposure data supportive of the reported health concerns and demonstrate the application of mobile monitoring coupled with NTA as a novel approach for rapid identification and mapping of potentially hazardous chemicals following an environmental disaster.
2023年2月3日，一列载有危险化学品的火车在俄亥俄州东巴勒斯坦脱轨。2023年2月中旬的初步移动空气监测揭示了一系列挥发性有机化合物（VOCs）独特的时空模式。为了确定对空气质量的长期影响，2023年3月和4月在公共道路上使用质子转移反应飞行时间质谱仪开展了两次后续移动空气监测活动。本研究旨在描述挥发性有机化合物的分布特征、识别热点区域并描述潜在危害。与3月相比，4月东巴勒斯坦地区目标挥发性有机化合物苯、甲苯和二甲苯的总体浓度较低。总体而言，3月在东巴勒斯坦地区通过非靶向分析（NTA）识别出的化合物（n = 48）比4月（n = 30）更多。其中几种挥发性有机化合物是在3月采样期间独特识别出的，在常见检测到的化合物中，东巴勒斯坦地区的平均浓度高于背景水平。空间分析揭示了苯和从非靶向分析中识别出的其他挥发性有机化合物（包括CHO、CHO和CHO）的热点区域具有相似模式。使用美国环境保护局（EPA）危害比较仪表板，分别有49%和40%的已识别挥发性有机化合物被列为对眼睛和皮肤有“非常高”或“高”刺激性危害。值得注意的是，眼睛和皮肤刺激是灾难现场附近居民报告的常见症状。此外，分别有29%、18%和14%的已识别挥发性有机化合物被列为对遗传毒性/致突变性、急性吸入毒性和急性皮肤毒性有“非常高”或“高”危害。总体而言，这些发现提供了支持所报告健康问题的暴露数据，并证明了移动监测与非靶向分析相结合作为一种在环境灾难后快速识别和绘制潜在危险化学品的新方法的应用。
