Introduction
The Flint Water Crisis is an ongoing public health catastrophe that began in 2014, in Flint, Michigan, a city with a predominantly black and impoverished population . The source of drinking water for the city was found to be contaminated, and in April 2014, the city changed the water source from the treated water from Lake Huron and the Detroit River to that of the Flint River as a cost-cutting measure for a city with economic struggles. This water supply change was made to make water more affordable for the residents of Flint, however government documents proved that residents were still being charged the same high water prices after the switch to the Flint river, even though the city’s water expenses went down drastically. Additionally, city officials did not apply corrosion inhibitors that decreases the corrosion rate of the metal pipes, causing the water that was (and is) being pumped into the homes of Flint residents to be infected with lead from the old pipes. This exposed some 100,000 residents to water that contained high levels of lead. In March 2015, Flint voted to switch back to water sourced from Detroit Water and Sewage Department. A state of emergency was issued in January 2016 by the Michigan governor Rick Snyder, and President Barack Obama later declared a federal state of emergency, which allowed for help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Homeland Security. The crisis lead to some 6,000-12,000 children to be exposed to drinking water with high levels of lead, and even caused an outbreak of Legionnare’s Disease, a disease caused by drinking or inhaling water that has bacteria in it. In the county, this disease killed 12 people and affected another 87, and was a direct result of the water supply change. The crisis was and still is terribly mishandled, and as a result, 4 government officials have resigned, 1 has been fired, and 15 criminal cases have been charged on various government officials- resulting in only 1 minor conviction, with all other cases being dismissed or otherwise dropped. Due to these public health concerns, officials instead began a lead service pipe replacement effort in January 2016, in addition to promised routine testing of the water supply. As early as 2017, many officials claimed that the water quality was back to safe levels, but the people in Michigan said otherwise, as there was an estimated 2,500 lead service pipes still in place as of April 2019. Additionally, water was still testing at below federal levels in many areas in the affected cities. Families and other residents protested relentlessly, and demanded to be provided with water bottles, and some participated in a utility bill strike, resulting in their water being shut off by officials. Governor Synder indicated that the drinking water was fine for the majority of the crisis, and even announced in 2018 that the city would halt the water bottle supply to residents. While the water quality had been improving, there was still traceable levels of lead present. It was not until late 2020 when the victims of the water crisis were awarded a combined settlement of $641 million, with roughly 80% of the settlement going to families of children affected by the crisis. Regardless of the settlement, people lost their lives, and many other residents have gained health conditions due to the water supply change in Flint, Michigan.