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East Palestine tragedy spills into Ohio girls high school basketball playoffs | George M. Thomas

george m. thomas, akron beacon journal
·2 min read
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Train cars and tanks lie on their sides along the tracks in East Palestine, Ohio, on Wednesday. The trains cars were part of 100-car freight train that derailed Feb, 3. 2023.
Train cars and tanks lie on their sides along the tracks in East Palestine, Ohio, on Wednesday. The trains cars were part of 100-car freight train that derailed Feb, 3. 2023.

Two Ohio school districts decided the safety and health of their student-athletes were more important than actually playing games in questionable situations.

The Beachwood High School girls basketball team was slated for a playoff game against Crestview near the East Palestine train derailment and the Bristol High School girls basketball team was set for a game there this past weekend.

Rather than risk their athletes, administrators in each district decided to forfeit after the Ohio High School Athletic Association declined to move the games to neutral sites after requests.

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"Crestview High School is located approximately 7 miles from East Palestine," Beachwood athletic director said of his decision in reports. "As a result of the train derailment and reports of toxic/hazardous chemicals and environmental concerns, we felt it was in our best interest to either move the game to a neutral site or forfeit the game."

Bristol superintendent Christopher Dray offered a similar sentiment in a statement to the Warren Tribune Chronicle.

As for the OHSAA, it declined to move the games because local, state and federal officials deemed the area safe for extracurricular activities.

Give those administrators, parents and everyone associated with making that decision credit for erring on the side of caution. As a parent of two, I wouldn’t want to put my sons in an unknown situation.

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And the reality of the tragedy in East Palestine as cleanup efforts go on, the situation is a great big unknown. Coming down on the side of caution is the least that could have and should have been done.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: East Palestine train derailment hits Ohio high school basketball