FYI: Water Dilemma in Flint
- From
- Rita Bair
A Water Dilemma in
or Costly?
By MITCH SMITHMARCH 24, 2015
chigan: Cloudy
Vernon White over the Flint River, which replaced Lake Huron as the water source in Flirt, Mich, Mr.
White says fe buys soda fo avoid the water.
FLINT, Mich. — Depending on the day, Melissa Mays says, the water flowing out of her home’s faucets
might have a blue tint. Or it might smell like mothballs. Or it might fill her home with the scent of an
overchiarinated swimrning pool.
Lately, Ms. Mays, who is 36 and works in marketing, has not been turning on her tap much at all, After
Flint changed the source of its drinking water last spring, Ms. Mays said, she noticed a change in the
water’s color and odor. Then she started having rashes, and clumps of her hair fell out. When the city
issued @ boll order, she stopped using the water for drinking and cooking. Now her family spends roughly
$400 a month on bottled water.
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“My cat gets bottled water, our glants aet bottled water, our fish gets bottled water,” sald Ms. Mays, who
has helped organize marches to protest the water conditions and is on a city commission seeking input
on how to move forward. “It takes four to five botties of water to fill up a pot for spaghetti.”
Flint officiais insist that the city’s water is safe. They say that the issues of odor and color are sanarate