5 things to know about Flint's water crisis

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5 things to know about Flint's water crisis

An once-quiet crisis in Flint is now drawing voluminous concern from around the nation as celebrities, politicians and presidential candidates steer attention to the toxic tap water in one of Michigan's biggest and most beleaguered cities

t's hard to put anything about the issue in a nutshell, but a solid summary is as follows:

In charge of the city's budget amid a financial emergency, the state decided to temporarily switch Flint's water source from Lake Huron to the Flint River as a cost-saving measure until a new supply line to Lake Huron was ready. The river had a reputation for nastiness, and after the April 2014 switch, residents complained their water looked, smelled and tasted funny.

Virginia Tech researchers found the water was highly corrosive. A class-action lawsuit alleges the state Department of Environmental Quality didn't treat the water for corrosion, in accordance with federal law, and because so many service lines to Flint are made of lead, the noxious element leached into the water of the city's homes.

The city switched back to the Lake Huron water supply in October, but the damage was already done to the lead pipes. The state is now handing out filters and bottled water with the National Guard.

Here's a look at five recent developments:

State of emergency on three levels

Mayor Karen Weaver, who took office two months ago, and Gov. Rick Snyder, who has been at the state's helm since 2011, have both declared states of emergency, with Snyder calling in the National Guard to help deliver clean water to the city's nearly 100,000 residents.

Responding to Weaver's and Snyder's cry for federal assistance, which Snyder said would help with temporary housing and home repairs, President Barack Obama also issued a state of emergency Saturday.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Homeland Security will lead Washington's response.

State Attorney General Bill Schuette is also taking action and said he will investigate how the crisis unfolded in an effort to determine if any laws were broken.

"The situation in Flint is a human tragedy in which families are struggling with even the most basic parts of daily life," he said in a statement.

Issue enters Democratic debate

Flint's water garnered some attention when leading Democratic presidential hopefuls Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders both made a point of mentioning it during Sunday's debate.

Sanders called out Snyder, a Republican, demanding his resignation and asserting that "a man who acts that irresponsibly should not stay in power."

Clinton said she sent a top campaign aid to meet with the mayor of Flint and said she had gone on a TV show to call for action.

"I think every single American should be outraged," Clinton said. "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. And the governor of that state acted as though he didn't really care."

Snyder responded on Twitter that "political statements and finger pointing" were a distraction to those working to solve the crisis.

Celebrities stepping in

Joining the political heavies are familiar names out of Hollywood, some of the city's favorite sons and daughters, namely filmmaker Michael Moore, actress Sandra Bernhard and singer-actress Cher.

Cher and bottler Icelandic Glacial are joining forces to donate 181,440 bottles of water, slated for delivery to a local food bank Wednesday. Bernhard has been active on the talk-show circuit and social media, instructing her fans and followers on the best ways to get clean water to her hometown.

Mayor worries about the long term

State officials initially told residents everything was OK -- then-Mayor Dayne Walling even made a point to drink the water on local TV -- until Virginia Tech researchers in August performed tests and found the elevated lead levels. The scope of the problem came into even better focus when local pediatrician Mona Hanna-Attisha announced that records showed lead levels in toddlers had doubled, and in some cases tripled, since the switch from Lake Huron.

Lead poisoning is dangerous for anyone -- the related woes include skin lesions, hair loss, vision loss, memory loss, depression and anxiety, according to a class-action lawsuit -- but Weaver seems equally worried about the future. Research shows lead exposure can affect a developing child's IQ, resulting in learning disabilities. Weaver worries that Flint will need an influx of funding in the future to deal with mental health issues and "an increase in the juvenile justice system."

Source: CNN

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1 Comment

  1. Goes to show that only professional engineers and operators should be making these decisions. I'm certain the State meant well, but obviously didn't think about the consequences of their action. Further, this is not an infrastructure issue--many utilities have lead service lines--but a leadership and operational problem. It is also a failure of local politicos to make the hard decisions and adequately fund the operation.

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