As we await a final report on the Norfolk Southern derailment that continues to haunt East Palestine, National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy made waves Wednesday when she told Congress the decision to blow open five tanks and burn what was inside was unnecessary.

Imagine how that confirmation must have hit residents who still have fears about the lingering effects on their health of burning vinyl chloride while other chemicals were spilling into the ground and water.

Homendy said the maker of the vinyl chloride that was inside those tank cars was left out of the communications coming from the command center. Though the company was advising that the tanks could be allowed to simply cool down, that information was never relayed to Gov. Mike DeWine and the first responders in charge.

“The only two scenarios that were ever brought up were a catastrophic explosion occurring, where shrapnel would be thrust in all directions to a one-mile radius or averting that through a controlled vent and burn,” said DeWine spokesperson Dan Tierney. “Nobody ever brought up a scenario where if you just did nothing, it wouldn’t explode.”

“This is extraordinary work by your team,” U.S. Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, told Homendy, “but this is a really, really troubling set of circumstances.”

Once again, Norfolk Southern finds itself in a position of defending its decision, claiming the move had nothing to do with trying to get trains moving again more quickly.

Safety reform is imperative. And part of that reform must be communication protocol for emergencies that includes EVERYONE who could have relevant information. Ensuring the decision-makers receive that information shouldn’t have to be spelled out.

There is much to learn from what happened in East Palestine. Just as disturbing as the revelation that a chemical maker’s knowledge of its own product never made it to first responders is the fact that almost nothing has changed since that day. It could all happen again tomorrow.