“We’re doing our best to ensure that folks know that the number of Burton residents who are on Flint water is quite small”, Hayman said. Ananich pointed to an unknown number of people who were potentially exposed before the disaster came to light and were never tested before the toxin dissipated from their body.
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Snyder said at the beginning of Thursday’s meeting it’s important for officials to engage with residents as much as possible. Numerous water infrastructures are 70 years old, and it will take $1.5 trillion to improve and modernize these systems.
Scientists and engineers say supplying Flint with water uncontaminated by lead and other pollutants won’t be easy.
The city has hired Edwards to oversee water testing.
The Republican governor released some staff emails on January 20, showing that he was well aware that Flint citizens were slowly being poisoned following a decision by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to force them to live with lead-tainted water.
“Growing up, we were always told, don’t go down by the Flint River, it’s disgusting, it’s polluted”, he said. Residents noticed the water smelled and looked dirty, but they were told by officials that the water was safe to drink.
Improperly treated water leached lead from pipes into drinking water after Flint switched from Detroit’s water system to the Flint River in 2014 to save money while under state financial management.
The agency that manages state buildings said Thursday water coolers were introduced at the building after Flint flunked some drinking water standards that weren’t related to lead.
Gary Peters (D-Mich.) blamed Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder for the crisis, saying that even though Michigan voters voted against an emergency manager form of government, Snyder “tweaked the law” to put an emergency manager in place, “circumventing the will of the state of Michigan”.
“We’ve had a city in the United States of America where the population, which is poor in many ways and majority African-American, has been drinking and bathing in lead-contaminated water”. She encouraged residents to have their water tested immediately before using filters.
On the opposite side of the city, Labrea Louis, 29, shuts off her phone outside Station 3 on Flint’s north side. They asked everyone who has not had their water tested to have it tested immediately.
Environmental activist Erin Brockovich appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to talk about the Flint water crisis. They’re also affected the most by what’s going on.
Even the donated water is posing a problem!
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Lurie said that the United States Department of Agriculture has approved a request for additional money so that Flint schools can purchase and serve foods high in calcium, iron and Vitamin C in response to potential lead exposure in Flint children.
