Sanders calls for Michigan governor to resign over Flint water crisis

President Barack Obama signed an emergency declaration Saturday that clears the way for federal aid to help resolve the drinking-water crisis in Flint, Mich.

DHS and FEMA will coordinate efforts to ameliorate “the hardship and suffering caused by the emergency on the local population”, the White House said. “To you, the people of Flint, I say tonight as I have before: I am sorry, and I will fix it”, he said.

“The state has responded, but the response needs far exceed the state’s capability”, Gov. Rick Snyder (R) said in a letter to the president, according to the Associated Press.

Residents complained about the taste, odor and appearance of the water immediately after the switch, but those complaints were largely ignored by city officials.

But reports in MI said Mr Obama denied that request, that would have freed up more than the $5m, as such declarations are only made for natural disasters.

Flint, which is about 60 miles (100 km) northwest of Detroit, returned to using that city’s water supply in October after tests found elevated levels of lead in the water and in the blood of some children.

The more corrosive water from the Flint River leached lead from the city pipes more than Detroit water did, leading to the problems.

The situation dates back to April 2014 when Flint switched water sources to save money. “The governor long ago knew about the lead in Flint’s water”. Federal funding will help cover the cost of providing water, water filters and other items.

However, they did not treat the water properly, which led to lead and other metals leaching from old pipes. Lead exposure can cause learning disabilities and behavioural problems in children.

On Tuesday, he activated the state’s National Guard to help distribute water and filters.

The U.S. Justice Department is helping the Environmental Protection Agency to investigate, and GOP 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. Additionally, Flint residents were dealt another blow on Wednesday when Governor Snyder announced there had been a surge in the number of cases of legionnaires disease in Flint over the past year, possibly linked to the tainted water in Flint.

“This a tragedy of staggering proportion and shocking that it’s happening in the middle of our country”, Cher said.