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| Flint water crisis: Meet the residents who are feeling the health effects | Flint water crisis: Meet the residents who are feeling the health effects |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| At the beginning of 2015, Flint resident Lewenna Terry’s then-nine-year-old son started having problems concentrating. | |
| Jaylon, now 10, went from being a student whose grades were consistently As and Bs to one with Cs and even Fs, his mother says. | Jaylon, now 10, went from being a student whose grades were consistently As and Bs to one with Cs and even Fs, his mother says. |
| Terry couldn’t say for sure the reason for the abrupt shift. But looming over her and her family’s lives was growing outcry over the strange, brown, odorous water that had been coming out of their taps since Flint switched from the Detroit water system to the Flint river in April 2014. | Terry couldn’t say for sure the reason for the abrupt shift. But looming over her and her family’s lives was growing outcry over the strange, brown, odorous water that had been coming out of their taps since Flint switched from the Detroit water system to the Flint river in April 2014. |
| Talk of lead contamination in Flint’s water was still being largely dismissed by local and government officials at the beginning of last year, but Terry, 37, had seen strange things since the water was switched. | Talk of lead contamination in Flint’s water was still being largely dismissed by local and government officials at the beginning of last year, but Terry, 37, had seen strange things since the water was switched. |
| A Fourth of July celebration in 2014 where young family members and their friends had bathed in a paddling pool for about an hour had resulted in them all coming out with monstrous rashes and bumps. One family member, now 14, has been unable to kick a months-long rash on his neck, which “comes and goes”, according to his mother. | A Fourth of July celebration in 2014 where young family members and their friends had bathed in a paddling pool for about an hour had resulted in them all coming out with monstrous rashes and bumps. One family member, now 14, has been unable to kick a months-long rash on his neck, which “comes and goes”, according to his mother. |
| “At first I thought it was the water,” she said. She admits she is unsure. | “At first I thought it was the water,” she said. She admits she is unsure. |
| The change in her son’s concentration at school and at home is so stark that he often has to sit by the teacher, says Terry, who is a school worker, church secretary and youth leader. | The change in her son’s concentration at school and at home is so stark that he often has to sit by the teacher, says Terry, who is a school worker, church secretary and youth leader. |
| Before the change in early 2015, Jaylon was such an exemplary student that he had been selected by his school to represent it at a national convening. But Jaylon was pulled from the trip once his grades dropped. | Before the change in early 2015, Jaylon was such an exemplary student that he had been selected by his school to represent it at a national convening. But Jaylon was pulled from the trip once his grades dropped. |
| Today, Terry still wonders if it was the water that caused her son’s shift. She recently had her youngest child, who is three, tested for lead poisoning for free and is awaiting the result. Her eldest two children, 13 and 10, have not been tested yet, as the free test was not made available for Flint children older than three. | Today, Terry still wonders if it was the water that caused her son’s shift. She recently had her youngest child, who is three, tested for lead poisoning for free and is awaiting the result. Her eldest two children, 13 and 10, have not been tested yet, as the free test was not made available for Flint children older than three. |
| Jaylon’s symptoms are “consistent” with a child who has undergone lead poisoning due to the ingestion of lead-contaminated water, confirms Mark Edwards, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, who is a 2007 MacArthur “Genius” grant recipient and world expert in water treatment and corrosion. | Jaylon’s symptoms are “consistent” with a child who has undergone lead poisoning due to the ingestion of lead-contaminated water, confirms Mark Edwards, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, who is a 2007 MacArthur “Genius” grant recipient and world expert in water treatment and corrosion. |
| According to the World Health Organization, even a low level of lead exposure “affects children’s brain development resulting in a reduced intelligence quotient (IQ), behavioral changes such as shortening of attention span and increased antisocial behavior, and reduced educational attainment”. | According to the World Health Organization, even a low level of lead exposure “affects children’s brain development resulting in a reduced intelligence quotient (IQ), behavioral changes such as shortening of attention span and increased antisocial behavior, and reduced educational attainment”. |
| The catch, though, is that even if Jaylon and other Flint children older than three are widely tested for lead poisoning, blood results may not be useful in revealing the extent of lead’s poisonous reach. | The catch, though, is that even if Jaylon and other Flint children older than three are widely tested for lead poisoning, blood results may not be useful in revealing the extent of lead’s poisonous reach. |
| Edwards, who led a research team testing houses (positively) for lead contamination in the summer of 2015, explains that even if a child’s blood lead levels were at poisonous levels following ingestion of lead-contaminated water one month, within just three months blood levels would no longer show worrying levels of lead. | Edwards, who led a research team testing houses (positively) for lead contamination in the summer of 2015, explains that even if a child’s blood lead levels were at poisonous levels following ingestion of lead-contaminated water one month, within just three months blood levels would no longer show worrying levels of lead. |
| Evidence of lead poisoning may leave the body relatively expeditiously, but the effects of lead poisoning are permanent. | Evidence of lead poisoning may leave the body relatively expeditiously, but the effects of lead poisoning are permanent. |
| Evidence of lead poisoning may leave the body relatively expeditiously, but the effects of lead poisoning are permanent. | Evidence of lead poisoning may leave the body relatively expeditiously, but the effects of lead poisoning are permanent. |
| “At this point it is impossible [to measure the extent of lead poisoning] because the evidence of harm is gone from the system. The lead is excreted,” Edwards says. | “At this point it is impossible [to measure the extent of lead poisoning] because the evidence of harm is gone from the system. The lead is excreted,” Edwards says. |
| If a child was poisoned by lead contamination in October, Edwards says, but had then switched to clean, non-leaded water straight after, traces in that child’s blood would have all but disappeared by now, just three months later. | If a child was poisoned by lead contamination in October, Edwards says, but had then switched to clean, non-leaded water straight after, traces in that child’s blood would have all but disappeared by now, just three months later. |
| Because many of the effects of lead poisoning are permanent, a child may be suffering from the effects of lead poisoning, he says, but with no way of it showing up in the blood through tests. | Because many of the effects of lead poisoning are permanent, a child may be suffering from the effects of lead poisoning, he says, but with no way of it showing up in the blood through tests. |
| Edwards says a safe approach would be to assume that at this point all of Flint’s children have been exposed to lead. | Edwards says a safe approach would be to assume that at this point all of Flint’s children have been exposed to lead. |
| According to WHO, there is no degree of lead poisoning that is considered safe, and young children are at particular risk health-wise when exposed to lead. | According to WHO, there is no degree of lead poisoning that is considered safe, and young children are at particular risk health-wise when exposed to lead. |
| High levels of exposure can lead to death. Children who survive lead poisoning are likely to be left with “mental retardation” and “behavioral disruption”. | High levels of exposure can lead to death. Children who survive lead poisoning are likely to be left with “mental retardation” and “behavioral disruption”. |
| “That’s what is so tragic about this. Is that for most parents, they will never know what might have been,” Edwards said. “[Lead poisoning] is irreversible. That’s why we train people and pay them a lot of money to make sure something like this never happens.” | “That’s what is so tragic about this. Is that for most parents, they will never know what might have been,” Edwards said. “[Lead poisoning] is irreversible. That’s why we train people and pay them a lot of money to make sure something like this never happens.” |
| In October 2015, after vehemently denying Flint’s water was lead-contaminated for 17 months, and in spite of evidence from medical and environmental researchers and private citizens to the contrary, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder finally admitted the presence of lead in Flint’s water, declaring the city was undergoing a public health crisis. | In October 2015, after vehemently denying Flint’s water was lead-contaminated for 17 months, and in spite of evidence from medical and environmental researchers and private citizens to the contrary, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder finally admitted the presence of lead in Flint’s water, declaring the city was undergoing a public health crisis. |
| That same month, Flint’s water system was switched back to the less corrosive Lake Huron water system. But the damage to the pipes, which had been releasing lead into Flint citizens’ water, was done, meaning water coming out of taps in Flint households would likely still contain lead. | That same month, Flint’s water system was switched back to the less corrosive Lake Huron water system. But the damage to the pipes, which had been releasing lead into Flint citizens’ water, was done, meaning water coming out of taps in Flint households would likely still contain lead. |
| Damage had also been done to Flint residents. | Damage had also been done to Flint residents. |
| ‘When you get water that’s brown, you don’t drink it’ | ‘When you get water that’s brown, you don’t drink it’ |
| Terry’s mother, Bishop Bernadel Jefferson, a 64-year-old community organizer and pastor in central Flint, said she only had to try the water a few times when it changed in 2014 to decide she wasn’t going to drink it. | Terry’s mother, Bishop Bernadel Jefferson, a 64-year-old community organizer and pastor in central Flint, said she only had to try the water a few times when it changed in 2014 to decide she wasn’t going to drink it. |
| “It left a filmy taste in my mouth,” she said, speaking to the Guardian from Flint. | “It left a filmy taste in my mouth,” she said, speaking to the Guardian from Flint. |
| The water was brown and smelled bad, she said. | The water was brown and smelled bad, she said. |
| When Jefferson and fellow community members started to speak up and raise concern with city and state officials, she says they were repeatedly shushed. | When Jefferson and fellow community members started to speak up and raise concern with city and state officials, she says they were repeatedly shushed. |
| But no amount of reassurance could change the strange things she and the people around her were witnessing. | But no amount of reassurance could change the strange things she and the people around her were witnessing. |
| Slowly, through raising awareness by word of mouth, Jefferson says family, friends and acquaintances decided to stop drinking the water, regardless of what officials were telling them. | Slowly, through raising awareness by word of mouth, Jefferson says family, friends and acquaintances decided to stop drinking the water, regardless of what officials were telling them. |
| “They said it was fine. But anyone with any common sense knows that when you get water that’s brown, you don’t drink it.” | “They said it was fine. But anyone with any common sense knows that when you get water that’s brown, you don’t drink it.” |
| It wasn’t just the water’s appearance that was bad. | It wasn’t just the water’s appearance that was bad. |
| “I had congregants breaking out, kids getting rashes, people ending up in the hospital. It [the water] was making people sick in the community.” | “I had congregants breaking out, kids getting rashes, people ending up in the hospital. It [the water] was making people sick in the community.” |
| “The more we complained about it to those in charge, the more we were told it was fine. (‘See, I drink it,’ they would say). We just continued to complain.” | |
| Sticking with what her eyes, mind and heart were telling her, and not what authorities were, Jefferson scaled back tap water usage as much as possible. | Sticking with what her eyes, mind and heart were telling her, and not what authorities were, Jefferson scaled back tap water usage as much as possible. |
| No more drinking it, cooking or washing vegetables with it. No more brushing teeth with it. No more bathing in it. | No more drinking it, cooking or washing vegetables with it. No more brushing teeth with it. No more bathing in it. |
| “The only thing you can do with it is flush it down the toilet,” she says. | “The only thing you can do with it is flush it down the toilet,” she says. |
| Jefferson says she continues to wash her hands with it, even if her skin also appears to have become dry and scaly as a consequence. She uses extensive moisturizing cream to try and compensate. | Jefferson says she continues to wash her hands with it, even if her skin also appears to have become dry and scaly as a consequence. She uses extensive moisturizing cream to try and compensate. |
| After using tap water, Terry says her plants died, as did the kids’ four fish. | After using tap water, Terry says her plants died, as did the kids’ four fish. |
| Terry has started collecting one case of free water from the nearest fire station a day. But that’s not enough, she says. She still has to cover the cost of the rest. | Terry has started collecting one case of free water from the nearest fire station a day. But that’s not enough, she says. She still has to cover the cost of the rest. |
| Trust in government officials running low | Trust in government officials running low |
| Beyond physical ailments, both known and suspected, it is trust for local, state and government officials that is running very low. | Beyond physical ailments, both known and suspected, it is trust for local, state and government officials that is running very low. |
| Lathan Jefferson, Pastor Jefferson’s husband, a 62-year-old Flint driver of an ice-cream truck, says that for months people kept using the water because authorities said it was safe. | Lathan Jefferson, Pastor Jefferson’s husband, a 62-year-old Flint driver of an ice-cream truck, says that for months people kept using the water because authorities said it was safe. |
| When he warned them to stop, some fellow residents retorted that if authorities were telling them the water was fine to use, then it must be. | When he warned them to stop, some fellow residents retorted that if authorities were telling them the water was fine to use, then it must be. |
| “A lot of people felt like the government would not do this to them,” he says. | “A lot of people felt like the government would not do this to them,” he says. |
| “Have you heard of the Tuskegee experiment?” he says he would answer, referring to a US public health-funded medical experiment, which between 1932 and 1972 monitored the progression of syphilis in poor, African American men in Alabama under false pretenses, and without administering treatment to the patients, despite treatment being increasingly known and available. | “Have you heard of the Tuskegee experiment?” he says he would answer, referring to a US public health-funded medical experiment, which between 1932 and 1972 monitored the progression of syphilis in poor, African American men in Alabama under false pretenses, and without administering treatment to the patients, despite treatment being increasingly known and available. |
| The experiment is widely acknowledged as one of the worst and most shameful acts of medical racism in American twentieth century history. | |
| Jefferson recalls his efforts to call up the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Environmental Protection Agency, among other public organizations. He says his calls were always transferred, or not taken, and never amounted to someone addressing his complaints. | Jefferson recalls his efforts to call up the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Environmental Protection Agency, among other public organizations. He says his calls were always transferred, or not taken, and never amounted to someone addressing his complaints. |
| What he could do is double up efforts to raise awareness locally, and get Flint’s majority black, socio-economically deprived population to believe authorities may not always have their backs. | What he could do is double up efforts to raise awareness locally, and get Flint’s majority black, socio-economically deprived population to believe authorities may not always have their backs. |
| Jefferson, the ice-cream truck driver, asks me whether I have heard of the Tuskegee experiment. I acquiesce. Sadly, I have. | Jefferson, the ice-cream truck driver, asks me whether I have heard of the Tuskegee experiment. I acquiesce. Sadly, I have. |
| “That’s what I kept telling them,” he says. “That’s what I kept telling them.” | “That’s what I kept telling them,” he says. “That’s what I kept telling them.” |
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