Obama declares emergency over foul water in MI

The White House also said the Federal Emergency Management Agency will co-ordinate all disaster relief efforts to “alleviate the hardship and suffering” of residents.

Bernie Sanders on Saturday called on Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder to resign for his administration’s failure to deal with a lead-poisoning crisis that has sickened thousands of children in Flint, Michigan. He wrote that the governor knew about the lead in Flint’s water long ago and did nothing. “But aid under that designation tends to be far less and far more limited, allowing, for instance, for debris removal and emergency measures, not the kind of permanent work Snyder is seeking to have done replacing water lines with lead in them”.

Officials with the Flint Water Response Team said water distribution efforts were expanded Saturday with more than 20 water response teams going door to door to distribute safe water resources to the homes of Flint residents.

In 2014, to cut costs, an unelected official in Flint switched the city’s water supply from Detroit’s water system to get water from the Flint River.

Mr Obama stepped in after a plea by Michigan Governor Rick Snyder earlier this week.

After the change in water source in 2014, residents immediately complained about the smell and taste of the water.

Flint – Filmmaker and former Flint resident Michael Moore called on Barack Obama to visit the beleaguered city of Flint next week when the president plans to tour the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

On Friday morning, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette said he would investigate whether any laws were violated in the crisis.

In October, testing revealed increased lead levels in water supplies and in children’s blood. The corrosive water lacked adequate treatment and caused lead to leach from old pipes in homes and schools. But local and state officials failed to use corrosion controls – chemicals added to the water to help prevent lead from leaching in.

In late December, Wyant and DEQ Spokesman Brad Wurfel resigned over the Flint crisis.

Much larger funds can be made available under a federal disaster claim, but those are normally reserved for natural disasters rather than man-made ones like the water crisis in Flint.

Cher has donated 181,440 bottles of water to the people of Flint, Michigan, who have not had fresh drinking water for over a year.