Fresh water in building was for all

The top of a water tower at the Flint Water Plant is seen in Flint, Michigan January 13, 2016.

U.S. Senate Democrats have proposed up to $400 million in emergency federal aid for Flint – contingent on the state matching the spending on Flint pipes dollar for dollar. The water supply became contaminated when the city, under emergency state management, switched from the Detroit municipal water system and began drawing from the Flint River in April 2014 to save money.

The water came at a time when Flint announced it had flunked some drinking water standards apart from the lead contamination that has spoiled tap water and caused a crisis.

The new information, in the form of documents obtained by the government watchdog group Progress Michigan, comes as Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder’s office is embroiled in controversy surrounding the ongoing water crisis in Flint.

“We have a crisis in Flint”, Snyder said, echoing comments he’s made the last few weeks.

Just as we thought things couldn’t get any worse in the Flint water crisis, new revelations prove there is always room for more outrage.

He also requested, by Feb. 9, documents and communications to and from Hedman related to the Flint water supply, and those referring to EPA water expert Del Toral, who penned an in-house memo in February 2015 raising flags about problems posed by the lack of corrosion controls in Flint’s water.

Tom Gores, a Flint native and owner of the Detroit Pistons, pledged Thursday to raise $10 million to address the short- and long-term needs of his MI hometown.

Many residents of Flint, where more than 40 percent of households are below the poverty line – say they don’t have the money to do the work themselves.

He pointed out the futility of donating bottles of water, given the amount that would be required on a daily basis.

“It shows that they took action by taking water coolers into the state offices even as they ignored calls for help from the residents in Flint”, said Lonnie Scott, Progress Michigan executive director. He added that officials never told employees the water was unsafe to drink. Kettering University, located in Flint, determined the lead-tainted water poisoned up to two percent of Flint citizens, including 23 children. It’s also worth noting that, besides the emergency response under way now, there would be little any president could do to resolve it. But that doesn’t excuse the candidates from recognizing it as a big issue at the moment, one that speaks to the failure of government to deliver on basic services.

Snyder explained that lead only stays in blood for 28 days, so children may have been exposed before their blood was tested for lead. He says the funding will provide immediate resources in Flint but is not the end of state assistance.

“You’ve got to go the extra mile”, Kasich said.