Shortly before 9 p.m. on Feb. 3, Norfolk Southern freight train 32N carrying both ordinary and hazardous cargo approached East Palestine, Ohio. East Palestine is located less than one mile west of the Pennsylvania border and is home to approximately 4,700 people. Although the train crew had yet to declare an emergency, an electronic sensor alerted them to an overheated wheel bearing. The crew was slowing the train when 38 rail cars derailed, spilling some of their contents to the surrounding land and waterways.