A US federal judge has approved a $626 million payout to Flint residents whose water supply was poisoned by lead. The water poisoning came...
A US federal judge has approved a $626 million payout to Flint residents whose water supply was poisoned by lead.
The water poisoning came after the disastrous 2014 decision by Michigan's then-governor, Republican Rick Snyder, to switch the city's water source from Lake Huron to Flint River, with the city failing to swiftly acknowledge the problem.
Most of the money - $600 million - is coming from the state of Michigan, which was accused of repeatedly overlooking the risks of using the Flint River without properly treating the water.
Flint resident Melissa Mays, a 43-year-old social worker, said her three sons have had medical problems and learning challenges due to lead.
'Hopefully it´ll be enough to help kids with tutors and getting the medical care they need to help them recover from this,' Mays said of the payout. 'A lot of this isn´t covered by insurance. These additional needs, they cost money.'
She considers the settlement a 'win.'
Attorneys are seeking as much as $200 million in legal fees from the overall settlement. Levy left that issue for another day.
The deal makes money available to up to 20,000 Flint children who were exposed to the water, adults who can show an injury, certain business owners and anyone who paid water bills.
About 80 percent of what's left after legal fees is earmarked for children.
Pictured: A file photo shows the Flint River in Flint, Mich. A judge on Wednesday, November 10, 2021, approved a $626 million settlement for Flint residents and others who were exposed to lead-contaminated water
U.S. District Judge Judith Levy said in a 178-page opinion: 'The settlement reached here is a remarkable achievement for many reasons, not the least of which is that it sets forth a comprehensive compensation program and timeline that is consistent for every qualifying participant.'
The tragedy and Flint became a symbol of social injustice in the United States, and led to both a state and federal emergency being declared in Genesee County.
Some critics said the disaster in the predominantly Black city was an example of environmental racism.
It is believed that anywhere between 6,000 and 12,000 children were exposed to drinking water with high levels of lead due to corrosion of the water distribution system's pipes, with some suggesting as many as 20,000 were exposed.
Some 18,000 to 20,000 children lived in Flint at the time. The lead poisoning of thousands of the city's children threatens to have catastrophic health consequences lasting for decades.
In total, some 100,000 Flint water customers fell ill, prompting several lawsuits and neglect charges to be brought against Michigan Governor Rick Snyder.
In total, some 100,000 Flint water customers fell ill, prompting several lawsuits and neglect charges to be brought against Michigan Governor Rick Snyder (pictured in 2018 delivering his State of the State address at the state Capitol in Lansing, file photo)
Corey Stern, another key lawyer in the case, said he represented 'many brave kids who did not deserve the tragedy put on them.'
Children are particularly susceptible to the long-term risks of lead poisoning, which can result in a reduction in intellectual functioning IQ and an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease. The water poisoning was also linked to a possible outbreak of Legionnaire's disease in the country, that killed 12 people.
'This is a historic and momentous day for the residents of Flint, who will finally begin to see justice served,' said Ted Leopold, one of the lead attorneys in the litigation.
In a money-saving move, Flint managers appointed by then-Gov. Rick Snyder and regulators in his administration allowed the city to use the Flint River in 2014-15 while another pipeline was being built from Lake Huron.
But the river water wasn't treated to reduce corrosion. Lead in old pipes broke off and flowed to homes as a result.
There is no safe level of lead. It can harm a child's brain development and cause attention and behavior problems.
Flint switched back to a Detroit regional water agency in fall 2015 after Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha publicly reported elevated lead levels in children.
Virginia Tech professor Marc Edwards shows the difference in water quality between Detroit and Flint after testing, giving evidence after more than 270 samples were sent in from Flint that show high levels of lead during a news conference on Sept. 15, 2015
In this March 21, 2016 file photo, the Flint Water Plant water tower is seen in Flint, Mich. A judge on Wednesday, Nov. 10, 2021, approved a $626 million settlement for Flint residents and others who were exposed to lead-contaminated water
Flint is paying $20 million toward the settlement, while McLaren Health is paying $5 million and an engineering firm, Rowe Professional Services, is paying $1.25 million.
Lawsuits still are pending against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, McLaren and other engineering firms.
The deal was announced in August 2020 by Attorney General Dana Nessel and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, both Democrats, who were elected in 2018 while the litigation was in state and federal courts.
The judge said it was 'remarkable' that more than half of Flint's 81,000 residents have signed up for a share of the settlement.
It's not clear just how much each child will receive.
A claims process is next with families required to show records, such as blood tests or neurological results, and other evidence of injury.
Flint resident Gladyes Williamson holds a sign for Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder's resignation alongside a jug of her tap discolored tap water and a bag containing hair she has lost as more than 50 people protest in front of City Hall in downtown Flint, Mich. on April 25, 2016
'We've made history,' Mays said, 'and hopefully it sets a precedent to maybe don´t poison people. It costs more in the long run.'
The Flint saga isn't over. Nine people, including Snyder, have been charged with crimes. They've pleaded not guilty and their cases are pending.
The state last week agreed to pay $300,000 to the former head of the drinking water division. An arbitrator said Liane Shekter Smith was wrongly fired for what happened in Flint.
So far, the only person to be convicted in relation to the Flint Water Crisis is Corinne Miller from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, who was sentenced to a year of probation, 300 hours of community service and fined $1,200.
Many residents of the city continue to drink bottled water to this day, even though the water system is once again fed from the lake and the lead pipes have been mostly replaced.
For many, the Flint water scandal came to symbolize the country's 'environmental racism,' a term that refers to the disproportionate exposure of African Americans to pollutants in the air, water or soil.
Some 57 percent of Flint's 100,000 residents are Black, and more than a third live below the poverty line.
News of the payout came a month after another Michigan city - Benton Harbor - was gridlocked by residents rushing to get free bottled water after they were warned not to cook or brush with their tap water after vast amounts of lead were detected.
Officials in Benton Harbor sent out notices, distributed fliers and tried to improve the water system since high levels of lead were first detected in 2018, the New York Times reports, but state officials told residents in October not to use it at all.
Katia Kenney, 18 of Flint, Mich., volunteers as she loads cases of water into vehicles as non-profit Pack Your Back distributes more than 37,000 bottles of water on Monday, April 22, 2019, at Dort Federal Event Center in Flint, Michigan
Instead, they handed out bottled water at sites throughout the community, causing long lines and jamming traffic in the city of 9,100 residents.
'People can bathe in it,' Elizabeth Hertel, director of the department told Fox last month. 'We advise that they don't drink it, or cook with it, or use it to brush their teeth. As long as they're not ingesting it right now, that's what we're advising.'
Residents of the city say the water system in the city, 85 per cent of whose residents are black, has been contaminated for years.
In 2018, they said, tests started to show the lead level in the water well above the federal action level of 15 parts per billion in 10 percent of samples.
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