A federal judge has allowed a class action lawsuit filed against Norfolk Southern regarding the toxic train derailment in February 2023, to proceed.

The lawsuit filed on behalf of roughly 500,000 people, businesses, and property owners in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio was allowed to continue with an order from Judge Benita Pearson, who rejected the railroad company’s argument that it was protected under federal law.

The judge ruled that the case, which alleges negligence by Norfolk Southern in its handling of the derailment, is not protected under federal regulations, allowing the lawsuit to go on.

The train derailment on the evening of Feb. 3, 2023, near East Palestine, Ohio, involved a train that was carrying 20 cars of hazardous materials — with 11 of those cars derailing.

The National Transportation Safety Board said 38 train cars came off the tracks, and an ensuing fire damaged an additional 12 train cars. The incident created environmental and safety concerns for the surrounding area due to toxic materials being transported on the train cars.

A federal judge ruled last week that Norfolk Southern alone should be responsible for paying for the cleanup of the train derailment, denying the company’s claims that the companies that created the toxic chemicals on the train should also have to cover costs for cleanup.

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Clean up of the derailment in Ohio is expected to be completed later this year, and the NTSB said last month it plans to announce the cause of the derailment during a hearing in June.

President Joe Biden visited East Palestine a year after the derailment, touting how his administration has worked to help the town clean up and recover from the toxic derailment last year.