The Justice Department adds to suits against Norfolk Southern over the Ohio derailment

Smoke rises from a derailed cargo train in East Palestine, Ohio, on February 4, 2023. (Dustin Franz/AFP via Getty Images)

The U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Norfolk Southern over the major train derailment that occurred in East Palestine, Ohio, last month.

The suit, filed Thursday on behalf of the Environmental Protection Agency, accuses Norfolk Southern Railway Company and Norfolk Southern Corporation of "unlawfully polluting" the country's waterways and violating the Clean Water Act, which prohibits groups from releasing toxic pollutants into waterways without a government permit.