U.S. residents demand answers after train derailment: BBC

LONDON, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Local residents are still demanding answers nearly two weeks after a train carrying toxic chemicals derailed in the small Ohio town of East Palestine, the United States, the BBC has reported.

Even though officials including Governor Mike DeWine have assured the residents that air quality in the town was safe, confusion and distrust still remain, according to the BBC report.

Residents in the immediate area have complained of headaches and nausea more than a week after the chemicals were burned, according to various U.S. local reports.

Environmental experts told the BBC they had misgivings about the government's decision to allow people to return to East Palestine so soon after the crash and controlled burn.

"It certainly feels like state and local regulators moved too quickly to give the green light to people to go back," David Masur, executive director of the PennEnvironment Research &Policy Center, was quoted as saying.

"That builds a lot of distrust and scepticism from the public about trusting these agencies, which is a problem," he said.