Ohio sued rail company Norfolk Southern over the derailment of a train carrying toxic materials in the town of East Palestine last month, the state's attorney general announced Tuesday. The state is seeking damages, civil penalties and a "declaratory judgement that Norfolk Southern is responsible," he said. "This derailment was entirely avoidable," Yost said, adding that Norfolk Southern has seen an 80% increase in accidents over the past decade. According to the complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, the derailment is one of a "long string" of Norfolk Southern derailments and hazmat incidents. Since 2015, at least 20 Norfolk Southern derailments involved chemical discharge, the state claims.

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