Rail crews in Ohio have been burning off toxic chemicals from a freight train that derailed last week, after ordering nearly 2,000 residents to evacuate their homes.
The train, operated by Norfolk Southern Railroad and consisting of three locomotives and 150 freight cars, was travelling from Illinois to Pennsylvania when it derailed shortly before 9pm on Friday.
The incident set off a huge fire that forced the evacuation of hundreds of homes in the immediate vicinity.
Image: The controlled detonation of a section of the derailed train. Pic: AP
About 50 cars actually left the tracks, 20 of which carried hazardous materials, according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
Public safety concerns deepened after officials said pressure-relief devices on some tankers were found on Sunday to have stopped working, which the company said could “result in a catastrophic failure”.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said in a statement the chemical contents of the five rail cars in question were “unstable and could potentially explode, causing deadly disbursement of shrapnel and toxic fumes”.
A plan was made to perform a controlled release of the cars under the supervision of experts and emergency officials.
The venting of vinyl chloride, a highly flammable and carcinogenic gas, began with a single explosion, followed by a steady incineration of the remaining cargo, said Sandy Mackey, a spokesperson for the Ohio Emergency Management Agency.
Image: The tankers lying across the tracks
Live video on Monday showed a towering column of thick, black smoke rising from the accident site in East Palestine, Ohio, a village close to the Pennsylvania border northwest of Pittsburgh.
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No injuries were reported from the operation or the incident itself, authorities said.
Peggy Clark, a spokesperson for the Columbiana County Emergency Management Agency, said the mandatory evacuation covered an estimated 1,900 people on the Ohio side alone.
Image: Drone footage shows the freight train derailment
Mr DeWine’s office warned that fumes released into the air from the venting operation could be deadly if inhaled, while also posing the risk of skin burns and serious lung damage.
Vinvyl chloride is a colourless, industrially produced gas that burns easily and is used primarily in the manufacture of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipe and other products, according to the National Cancer Institute.
Donald Trump has responded after Elon Musk said some of his recent social media posts about the US president “went too far”.
The Tesla and SpaceX boss shared a series of posts on his X social media platform last week, including one which described Mr Trump’s sweeping tax and spending bill as a “disgusting abomination”.
Posting on X this morning, Mr Musk said: “I regret some of my posts about President @realDonaldTrump last week. They went too far.”
In response, the president is quoted as telling the New York Post: “I thought it was very nice that he did that.”
The publication said it spoke to Mr Trump in a brief phone conversation.
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19:32
Musk and Trump’s bust-up
The White House dismissed Mr Musk’s Epstein claims at the time, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt saying: “This is an unfortunate episode from Elon, who is unhappy with the One Big Beautiful Bill [a Republican tax and spending bill] because it does not include the policies he wanted.
“The president is focused on passing this historic piece of legislation and making our country great again.”
Mr Musk did not specify which posts he regretted.
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1:58
Could the Musk-Trump fallout stall US space goals?
In another post last Thursday, Mr Musk attacked Mr Trump’s tariffs, saying they “will cause a recession in the second half of this year”.
In response, Mr Trump, in an interview with ABC News, said Mr Musk had “lost his mind”. He also threatened to cancel government contracts with the businessman’s companies and said he had asked the billionaire to leave the White House.
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4:02
Trump and Musk’s feud explained
But yesterday, Mr Musk’s father Errol Musk told Sky News’ Moscow correspondent Ivor Bennett: “It’s like any argument. Everybody at some point says I’ll never make up, but then they do later.”
He said the argument likely happened because of “emotions welling out of hand”.
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0:46
Elon’s dad on the Musk-Trump bust-up
“They’ve had five months of intense day and night, hardly any sleep, and anybody who went through that would know your nerves are pretty much shredded after that time.”
He also said his son had texted him to say: “Don’t worry, we’re sorting it out.”
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A curfew has come into force in Los Angeles as officials attempt to “stop the vandalism and stop the looting”.
Mayor Karen Bass said the restrictions will be in force in downtown areas of the city from 8pm to 6am local time (4am to 2pm UK time) – and will likely be repeated in the coming days.
She confirmed that a local emergency had been declared as “we reached a tipping point”, with 23 businesses looted on Monday night.
Ms Bass said “graffiti is everywhere”, with “significant damage” to properties as a result of the protests.
Image: Workers try to remove graffiti after a protest over immigration raids. ICE Pic: AP/Damian Dovarganes
Image: Workers remove graffiti from the Ronald Reagan Federal Building in Santa Ana. Pic: Mindy Schauer/The Orange County Register via AP
Image: A protester marches past businesses being boarded up. Pic: Reuters/Leah Millis
Jim McDonnell, the chief of the Los Angeles Police Department, described the curfew as a “necessary measure to protect lives” as “unlawful and dangerous behaviour” had been escalating in the last few days.
On Tuesday alone, 197 arrests were made by the force, and he warned anyone violating the curfew without a valid reason would be detained.
Residents, people who are homeless, those travelling to and from work, credited media as well as public safety and emergency personnel, will be exempt from the curfew.
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The curfew covers a one square mile section of downtown LA that includes the area where protests have happened since Friday. The city of Los Angeles encompasses about 500 square miles.
Image: Workers board up a store in Santa Ana. Pic: AP/Jae C. Hong
Image: California National Guard soldiers stand at a federal agency building. Pic: AP
Image: Protesters are detained by law enforcement near the federal building in downtown LA. Pic: AP/Eric Thayer
The protests are in response to raids carried out by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE).
US President Donald Trump has activated 4,000 National Guard troops – the federal reserve force – to protect ICE officers carrying out raids as well as federal buildings in LA, despite objections by California Governor Gavin Newsom, who called the deployments unnecessary, illegal and politically motivated.
Mr Trump also sent 700 marines, who are expected to start operating in the LA area on Wednesday, according to the US Northern Command.
Image: The Ronald Reagan Federal Building and Courthouse in Santa are boarded up. Pic: Mindy Schauer/The Orange County Register via AP
Image: National Guard troops are lined up to protect a federal building in downtown LA. Pic: AP/Eric Thayer
State officials said Mr Trump’s response was an extreme overreaction to mostly peaceful demonstrations, with California senators Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla saying the domestic mobilisation of active-duty military personnel should only happen “during the most extreme circumstances, and these are not them”.
Mr Trump defended his decision in a speech to soldiers at the Army base in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, saying his administration would “liberate Los Angeles”.
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0:49
Trump: ‘We will liberate Los Angeles’
“Generations of Army heroes did not shed their blood on distant shores only to watch our country be destroyed by invasion and third-world lawlessness,” Mr Trump said.
“What you’re witnessing in California is a full-blown assault on peace, on public order and on national sovereignty, carried out by rioters bearing foreign flags.”
Image: A protester is arrested by law enforcement officers in downtown LA. Pic: AP/Eric Thayer
Image: California Highway Patrol officers clash with protesters in LA. Pic: AP/Eric Thayer
Gavin Newsom launched a blistering response in an address on Tuesday evening, saying the deployment of the National Guard without consulting Californian officials was a “brazen abuse of power by a sitting president”.
He said it “enflamed a combustible situation, putting our people, our officers and even our National Guard at risk”.
“That’s when the downward spiral began. He doubled down on his dangerous National Guard deployment by fanning the flames even harder – and the president, he did it on purpose,” Mr Newsom said.
Newsom takes the fight to Trump
California Governor Gavin Newsom’s televised address to the nation felt presidential as he took the fight to the man in the Oval Office, with a series of scorching putdowns.
He made a compelling case that Donald Trump’s extraordinary decision to send troops to LA against his wishes had put the country on the brink of authoritarianism.
He spoke the day after the Pentagon announced 700 marines were being deployed to join 4,000 National Guard troops ordered to the streets of LA by Trump.
But there has been no evidence so far that local law enforcement is being overwhelmed by the size or might of this resistance movement.
The head-to-head between Trump and Newsom is a compelling one.
The governor is known to harbour presidential ambitions for 2028 and is something of a MAGA bogeyman.
Newsom presides over a blue state, the biggest in the country, and is growing his brand with a podcast and – now – Trump has effectively put him in the national spotlight by bringing this political battle to his door.
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The governor accused Mr Trump of choosing escalation and “theatrics over public safety”, as the situation was “winding down” before the president deployed the troops.
Mr Newsom added: “When Donald Trump sought blanket authority to commandeer the National Guard, he made that order apply to every state in this nation.
“This is about all of us, this is about you. California may be first, but it clearly won’t end here; other states are next. Democracy is next. Democracy is under assault before our eyes.”
Image: A man holds a Mexican flag, which has become synonymous with solidarity for migrants targeted in the raids. Pic: AP/Damian Dovarganes
Image: A protester holds up a placard while marching through downtown LA. Pic: Reuters/Leah Millis
Image: People protest against the ongoing immigration raids in Washington, D.C. Pic: AP/Julia Demaree Nikhinson
Homeland Security said on Monday that ICE had arrested 2,000 immigration offenders per day recently, which significantly exceeds the 311 daily average in the fiscal year 2024 under former president Joe Biden.
The protests over the immigration raids have started to spread across the US, with demonstrations in cities like Seattle, Austin, Chicago and Washington, DC.
While chaos in Los Angeles continues, with a curfew in place in the city to prevent further unrest, Donald Trump spent the day hunkered down in a bunker with helicopters soaring above and drones buzzing by at a celebration of the US army’s birthday.
US correspondents Mark Stone in Washington DC and Martha Kelner in LA discuss the parallels between the president’s display of military celebration, and sending troops in to restore law and order against protesters.
Plus, as US and Chinese negotiators meet in London to try and resolve the ongoing trade war between the two nations, Mark and Martha ask what’s at stake.
If you’ve got a question you’d like the Trump100 team to answer, you can email it to trump100@sky.uk.