EAST PALESTINE — The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a two-day investigative hearing June 22 and 23 in East Palestine as part of the ongoing investigation into February’s Norfolk Southern derailment and subsequent hazardous material release and fires.

The hearing is set for 9 a.m. both days at East Palestine High School.

The focus will be hazard communications and emergency responder preparedness for initial emergency response, the circumstances that led to the decision to vent and burn five rail tank cars carrying vinyl chloride, freight car bearing failure modes and wayside detection systems, tank car derailment damage as well as crashworthiness and hazardous materials package information.

NTSB investigative hearings gather sworn testimony from witnesses on issues the agency identifies during the investigation. While the investigative hearing is open to the public, only NTSB board members, investigators, scheduled witnesses and parties to the hearing are allowed to participate.

The public is invited to observe the hearing.

“The communities most affected by this tragedy deserve as much insight as possible into our investigation, which is why we’re holding an investigative hearing in East Palestine,” NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said. “While we unfortunately cannot change what happened that day, our entire agency is committed to carrying out our mission, which doesn’t end when we get to the bottom of what happened and why it happened — we’ll also work vigorously to prevent it from ever happening again.”

A community meeting will precede the hearings. That meeting is set for 6 to 8 p.m. June 21 at the high school. Residents of East Palestine and surrounding areas, including neighboring communities in Pennsylvania, will be able to question Homendy about the NTSB and its investigative process.

Questions will be limited to the NTSB’s role in transportation safety, the NTSB investigative process, what to expect at an investigative hearing and the agenda for the investigative hearing on the derailment will be answered. No public health, assistance, damages, air, water or soil concerns will be addressed at the community meeting.