New water testing from the five wells that feed into East Palestine’s municipal water system shows no detection of contaminants, according to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.

With these test results, Ohio EPA is confident that the municipal water is safe to drink, according to a Wednesday statement from Gov. Mike DeWine’s office.

“Out of an abundance of caution, Ohio EPA took samples of raw, untreated water directly from all five wells over the past week,” DeWine’s office said. “A new sample of the combined, treated water was also collected.”

About 50 Norfolk Southern railroad cars, including 10 carrying hazardous materials, derailed Feb. 3 in East Palestine in a fiery crash. A decision was made to control burn five of the cars Feb. 6 that resulted in a huge plume of smoke.

About 3,500 fish across 7.5 miles of waterways have died.

There have been numerous reports of animals dying or getting sick as well as people getting ill. But state officials insist there is no evidence that the chemicals are causing the problems.

Michael Regan, administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, will visit East Palestine today.

In a tweet, he wrote he will “hear from residents in their homes, visit the site of the derailment and meet with emergency responders from the state.”

He told Fox News on Wednesday: “I have complete confidence in the partnership that’s been exhibited with the state leadership on water quality testing and our ability to support that water quality testing. And again, the air quality monitoring data that we are providing is done with the highest technologies available.”

Regan said if he lived in East Palestine he would drink the water if his home was tested. For those who haven’t been tested, Regan said they should drink bottled water until a test is done.

POLITICAL REACTIONS

U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Cincinnati, sent a letter Wednesday to Alan Shaw, Norfolk Southern’s CEO, asking that the company expand its existing financial reimbursement area to include all residents of East Palestine and not just those in the one-mile radius that were evacuated.

“They are all affected,” Vance wrote. “They should be reimbursed. I would strongly assert, however, that these checks should not and do not release the railroad from any liability it has incurred as a result of this disaster.”

Vance and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican, sent a separate letter Wednesday to Pete Buttigieg, secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation, requesting information regarding the agency’s “oversight of the United States’ freight train system and, more generally, how it balances building a safe, resilient rail industry across our country in relation to building a hyper-efficient one with minimal direct human impact.”

Vance, along with U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Cleveland, and the two U.S. senators from Pennsylvania sent a letter to Regan at the EPA expressing concern about the release of hazardous materials after the derailment.

“We appreciate the extensive air and water monitoring operations that have begun, but the impacted communities need further monitoring and assurance of safety of their homes, their water and their soil,” they wrote.

Also, state Sen. Michael Rulli, R-Salem, said he and his fellow state legislatures “hear your concerns, your worry and long-term anxiety about what this derailment has brought to the neighborhood.”

Rulli said he agreed with DeWine who said Tuesday that the railcars carrying hazardous materials that derailed “were improperly categorized. This is unacceptable and dangerous.”

Rulli criticized Buttigieg and President Joe Biden for not properly regulating the railroads.

They “aren’t interested in (that) until disaster strikes, if then,” Rulli said.

State Rep. Monica Robb Blasdel, R-Columbiana, said she’s sent letters to various state and federal agencies urging them to contact her office to collaborate on efforts for finding solutions regarding the impact of the derailment.

The General Assembly, she wrote, stands “ready to address the needs of the community and all Ohioans who are affected.”

State Rep. Lauren McNally, D-Youngstown, said her “top priority has been the residents and the local governments. They deserve safety. They deserve facts. They deserve real information in real time.”