Benton Harbor Water Proceedings Seek Class Case Status | WGN Radio 720

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File-Volunteers will assist in the distribution of water bottle cases at the God Household of Faith in Benton Harbor, Michigan, Friday, October 29, 2021. Benton Harbor, Michigan, and local officials have been the target of a lawsuit over high levels of lead in Benton Harbor’s drinking water. A lawsuit filed in federal court this week accuses states and cities of “intentional indifference” in responding to issues that began to arise in 2018. (Nicole Hester / MLIVE.com / The Grand Rapids Press via AP, File)

Benton Harbor, Michigan (AP) — Michigan and local officials have been the target of a lawsuit over high levels of lead in Benton Harbor’s drinking water.

A lawsuit filed in federal court this week has accused states and cities of “intentional indifference” in responding to issues that began to arise in 2018. Doretha Brazil, one of the many Benton Harbor residents listed in the proceedings, just recently realized that she should avoid drinking water, she said.

According to a proceedings seeking the status of a class action, “thousands of people were injured in lead exposure in the waters of Benton Harbor.”

The proceedings were filed a week after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it had found various violations of aquatic plants in Benton Harbor and problems with how the city had contacted residents about lead in the water. it was done.

The state has been supplying free bottled water for weeks, promising to help Benton Harbor replace lead service lines outside the home. Chemicals have been applied to reduce corrosion, but lead is seeping out of old pipes.

A spokesman for Governor Gretchen Whitmer defended the state’s response. Bobby Lady said regulators ordered corrosion prevention and urged the city to contact residents.

Benton Harbor is a community of 9,100 people, mostly black and mostly low-income, about 100 miles (160 km) from Chicago.

This week’s judge granted final approval for a $ 626 million settlement with residents of Flint, whose water was contaminated with lead and bacteria in 2014-15. The state is paying $ 600 million.

Benton Harbor Water Proceedings Seek Class Case Status | WGN Radio 720

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