U.S. EPA Administrator, Michael Regan, as well as other state and local officials paid a visit to East Palestine Thursday afternoon to reassure residents in a time of fear and confusion.

Regan began the conference by stating that he understands the way residents feel including concerns about air and water quality and even questioning information given by local and national leaders.

"I want the community to know that we hear you, we see you and we will get to the bottom of this," Regan said.

U.S. Senator, Sherrod Brown, Valley Congressman, Bill Johnson and Ohio EPA Director Anne Vogel also showed up to the conference to reassure residents that they are working to hold Norfolk Southern accountable and make sure East Palestine is a safe place to live.

"The sign that welcomes you to East Palestine says, 'East Palestine: It's the place to be.' So our commitment to you from Governor DeWine and the Ohio EPA is that we're going to return it. We're going to make sure East Palestine continues to be the place to be," Vogel said.

When asked if he would allow his children to drink or bathe in the village's water, Regan told local media that if his home had been tested and he was confident it was safe, he would.

"If those homes had been tested by the state and given a clean bill of health, yes. As a father, I trust the science, I trust the methodology that this state is using. ... But if those homes haven't tested or are on private well water, I would advise that they get those homes tested," Regan said.

Regan recommends to continue to use bottled water if your home has not been tested or you are on private well water, and says you can reach out to the EPA for your testing needs.

"We are testing every aspect of the water and every aspect of the air, and we are using very sound science and advanced technologies to ensure that we're protecting these communities," Regan said.

When asked about what the village needs to do to be eligible for federal assistance, Senator Brown told local media outlets he's been working with Governor DeWine, who's been in communications with the White House. 

While she was not at the conference, Youngstown-based state representative, Lauren McNally, along with other Ohio Democrats had urged Governor DeWine to declare an emergency in East Palestine.

"It is abundantly clear that more resources are urgently needed to fully address the cost of the disaster on the people of this small community and the surrounding area," said a joint letter from McNally and state Democrats.

"I think whether it's FEMA, whether it's CDC, whether it's EPA already, whether it's FRA, all of them are on board, so you will see that seamless work between Governor DeWine on behalf of the state, on behalf of the state and President Biden and me and I'd assume Senator Vance and the two Congress people here from Ohio today working on this, so I think there's nothing to worry about that way," Senator Brown said

Congressman Johnson tells media outlets that he and Congress have gotten to work following Governor DeWine's recent comments calling the fact that the train was not classified as hazardous "absurd."

"As soon as we learned about that, my team in Washington began working with the Department of Transportation to understand how that process works. What is the criteria for being labeled a hazardous material carrying train, how does it happen, who pulls the trigger to say yes or no," Johnson said.

Johnson added that it's very important that U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Pete Buttigieg sees the derailment site for himself in person.

Stay connected with 21 News both online and on air for the latest updates on the East Palestine train derailment disaster.