Clinton to detour from New Hampshire, visit Flint, Michigan

The amendment was the product of bipartisan negotiations over the last week, and would help Flint, Michigan and other states that have emergency water crises.

Senators David Vitter of Louisiana, James Inhofe of Oklahoma and John Cornyn of Texas say it “certainly appears that the EPA did not take action” or least alert the public about lead contamination in Flint’s water.

DEQ Director Dan Wyant and communications director Brad Wurfel resigned, and so did Region 5 EPA director Susan Hedman.

One of the two DEQ supervisors who were suspended last month, has become the latest to lose their job and the first to be fired because of their role in the Flint water crisis.

Churches in Flint have been a destination for donations and pick-up of bottled water, filters, baby wipes, and liquid formula.

Rick Snyder on Friday defended how his office responded to an email flagging a potential link between a surge in Legionnaires’ disease and Flint’s water, saying an aide asked for further investigation but a state agency did not bring forward the issue again.

Snyder publicly disclosed the spike in Legionnaires’ cases in January, 10 months later, saying he learned about it a couple of days earlier.

Regarding replacing the lead pipes, Snyder said, “That’s one of the issues we have to look at statewide, and that’s a national issue”. They were trying to do something good, Edwards says, but the unintended result was a massive lead contamination event – the worst in modern U.S. history.

“We take it very seriously”, said Glen Gerads, Minneapolis Water Treatment Director.

But it may not be the help that some businesses need. The more corrosive water from the river leached more lead from the city pipes than Detroit water did. He also said his administration is analyzing longer-term infrastructure needs.

In Flint, Michigan, where the municipal water supply has been contaminated with lead, undocumented immigrants have been turned away from getting emergency water at distribution centers because they couldn’t produce driver’s licenses.

The former secretary of state intends to use her trip to urge Senate Republicans to approve the $600 million amendment to help Flint.

Flint, a city that once relied on the auto industry, has hit hard times as local officials estimate that more than 40% of it residents live below the poverty line and 50% of the homes have been abandoned.