FLINT,
Mich. -- President Obama signed an emergency declaration Saturday for
Flint, Michigan, that clears the way for federal aid for the city, which
is undergoing a drinking water crisis.
FLINT, Mich. -- President Obama signed an emergency declaration Saturday for Flint, Michigan, that clears the way for federal aid for the city, which is undergoing a drinking water crisis.
The
White House issued a release calling for the Federal Emergency
Management Agency to coordinate all disaster relief efforts to
"alleviate the hardship and suffering" on residents. Flint switched
water supplies in 2014, and the corrosive water from the Flint River
leached lead from old pipes.
FEMA has been authorized to provide water, filters, cartridges
and other items for 90 days. Direct federal funding also will be made
available.
Republican Gov. Rick Snyder requested the declaration
late Thursday, saying needs "far exceed the state's capability," and
added that emergency measures could cost $41 million. His letter to
Obama painted a bleak picture of the troubled city, describing Flint as
an "impoverished area" that has been overwhelmed by the release of lead
from old pipes.
The tap water in Flint, population 99,000, became contaminated after the city switched its water supply from the Detroit water system to the Flint River
while a pipeline to Lake Huron is under construction. The corrosive
water lacked adequate treatment and caused lead to leach from old pipes
in homes and schools.
Flint returned to the Detroit system in
October after elevated lead levels were discovered in children, and
could tap into the new pipeline by summer.
But officials remain
concerned that damaged pipes could continue to leach lead, to which
exposure can cause behavior problems and learning disabilities in
children as well as kidney ailments in adults. A spike in cases of Legionnaires' disease
may also be tied to the water contamination. CBS News correspondent
Adriana Diaz reported Friday there have been 87 cases of the
pneumonia-like illness since the water switch -- and ten people have
died.
The National Guard began distributing free water, filters and other supplies earlier this week. But for angry residents, it's not enough.
Michigan
National Guard Staff Sergeant William Phillips assists a Flint resident
with bottled water at a fire station in Flint, Michigan in this file
photo from January 13, 2016.
REUTERS
Friday night at Freeman Elementary School's Family Fun Night, health officials conducted lead testing for children, CBS affiliate WWJ reported.
"It
really is a scary situation to know that we can't get clean drinking
water," said Sherri Miller, who brought her first-grade son, Jameer, to
have a finger-prick blood sample tested. "It really is scary to think
someone knew about this" and did nothing.
"It has such damning, lifelong and generational consequences,"
said Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, director of pediatric residency at Hurley
Children's Hospital, where more than 2,000 children have been tested.
She is credited with bringing the problem to the public's attention
after state agencies initially dismissed her concerns.
"It was
frustrating that it went on for so long," Hanna-Attisha said,
complaining that even since the state began taking action, "everything
has been slow."
"The state was telling everybody, 'It's fine,
relax. ... It's safe,"' even as people complained that the water looked
cloudy and tasted bad, said community activist Melissa Mays. "They
lied."
Mays, her husband and three sons ages 11, 12 and 17 are
taking medication to reduce high lead and other heavy metal levels in
their blood.
"Like everybody else, we drank and cooked with it because they told us it was safe," she said.
Rabecka Cordell said she learned from her doctor that both she
and her 5-year-old son, Dayne, have lead poisoning. She said she also
has leukemia, and her son has learning and speech disabilities.
She won't even bathe in the water and won't wash her son in it.
"It's ridiculous," Cordell said.
Hurley
Children's Hospital is distributing 10,000 booklets on mitigating the
effects of lead on children, including recipes high in iron, calcium and
vitamin C. Adding to the challenge is that there are few grocers with
fresh produce within Flint city limits. At a local farmers market, the
hospital offers weekly recipe and cooking demonstrations with lead in
mind. The first one was hearty egg burritos.
Nutrition "has a huge mitigating role," Hanna-Attisha said.
She urged parents to consult early and often with a pediatrician.
In
consultations, the doctor said, "we need to give families hope that
with secondary prevention interventions, not every kid is going to have
problems."
Joining calls from outraged Flint residents, Democratic
presidential candidate Bernie Sanders on Saturday called for Snyder to
resign.
"There are no excuses. The governor long ago knew about
the lead in Flint's water. He did nothing. As a result, hundreds of
children were poisoned. Thousands may have been exposed to potential
brain damage from lead. Gov. Snyder should resign," Sanders said in a
statement.
"Because of the conduct by Gov. Snyder's
administration and his refusal to take responsibility, families will
suffer from lead poisoning for the rest of their lives. Children in
Flint will be plagued with brain damage and other health problems. The
people of Flint deserve more than an apology," Sanders said.
Members
of Michigan's congressional delegation applauded the FEMA declaration.
Democratic U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow said she will push for long-term
resources, and Democratic Rep. Dan Kildee said residents "deserve every
resource available to make sure they have safe water and are able to
recover from this terrible man-made disaster created by the state."
The
U.S. Justice Department is helping the Environmental Protection Agency
investigate the matter, and state Attorney General Bill Schuette has
opened his own probe, which could focus on whether environmental laws
were broken or if there was official misconduct.
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