FEMA sends officials to help with Flint water crisis Paul Egan, Detroit Free
Press LANSING, Mich. The federal government's disaster relief agency has sent
three officials to assist Michigan with the Flint drinking water crisis at the
state's request, but Gov. Rick Snyder has not yet requested federal financial
aid in connection with the ongoing public health emergency, a Michigan State
Police spokeswoman said Saturday. Rafael Lemaitre, director of public affairs
for the Federal Emergency Management Agency in Washington, D.C., said Friday on
Twitter that FEMA has deployed two liaison officers to the Michigan Emergency
Operations Center to provide technical assistance. A third FEMA liaison officer
arrived Saturday, a state police official said. Capt. Chris Kelenske, deputy
director of emergency management and homeland security for the state police,
asked FEMA on Wednesday to send the officials "to provide support if we have
any questions" about the emergency response process, state police spokeswoman
Nicole Lisabeth told the Free Press on Saturday. But no federal financial
aid has been requested by the state because local officials are still
conducting assessments and "no requests have been specifically made from local
officials
that needs have not been met," Lisabeth said. Snyder, who declared a state of
emergency in Flint and Genesee County on Tuesday, is facing criticism for
not declaring an emergency sooner and for not requesting federal financial help
through FEMA. Snyder spokesman Dave Murray said Tuesday that under the
law, Snyder could not declare a state of emergency until Genesee County did so.
That happened Monday, one day before Snyder acted. Flint's drinking water
became contaminated with lead in 2014 after its supply source was switched from
Lake Huron water provided by what was then the Detroit Water and Sewerage
Department to the more polluted and corrosive Flint River, while the city was
under the control of a state-appointed emergency manager. The cost-cutting
move resulted in a spike in lead levels in children. Lead can cause permanent
brain damage. A recent preliminary report from a task force appointed by
Snyder placed most of the blame on the state Department of Environmental
Quality, which failed to require the addition of anticorrosive chemicals to the
water. That prompted a Snyder apology and the Dec. 29 resignation of DEQ
Director Dan Wyant. Although the state assisted the city in moving its source
of drinking water back to Lake Huron water supplied by Detroit in October,
concerns about contamination remain because the more corrosive Flint River water
damaged pipes and other infrastructure. Michigan's chief medical executive,
Eden Wells, said Thursday that Flint residents should either use a lead filter
on their drinking water taps, or drink bottled water until further notice. She
also called on parents to have children younger than 6 blood-tested immediately
for signs of lead poisoning. Under state and federal law, after Snyder declared
a state of emergency Tuesday, he may request financial assistance through
FEMA "if state and local government resources are unable to cope with the
emergency or disaster. At Snyder's request, "FEMA may conduct a Preliminary
Damage
Assessment in cooperation with state and local emergency management officials,"
according to a fact sheet distributed by the Michigan State Police. The
results of that assessment are then reviewed by the governor's office and other
state officials and used as a basis to determine whether to request federal
financial assistance, the fact sheet said. Flint Mayor Karen Weaver met in
Lansing with Snyder on Thursday and said preliminary estimates to repair Flint
water distribution infrastructure damaged by corrosive water have ranged from
millions of dollars to as high as $1.5 billion. Health-related costs would
be on top of that. Monica Lewis-Patrick, a spokeswoman for the group We the
People of Detroit, said at an anti-Snyder rally Friday in Flint that Snyder
should not only be requesting federal financial assistance, but should be
mobilizing the Michigan National Guard to assist with the crisis.
This article is provided to you as a courtesy of NFB
