BATTLE CREEK, Mich. — Battle Creek city leaders said babies should not drink the tap water in the area after recent tests turned up high levels of mineral that can be harmful to young kids.
The Calhoun County Public Health Department detected high levels of manganese in the water and parents rushed to fire stations around Battle Creek to get their hands on free bottled water.
The warning is new territory for local health officials who have never dealt with the issue before.
I’m a first-time mom so I wasn’t sure about what was going on."
Manganese is a metal found naturally in food and water, but it can be dangerous to infants if consumed at high levels.
Any water used for an infant’s food needs to come from a bottle until further notice.
Fluery said the high levels of manganese were discovered during routine fire hydrant flushing.
Duboise “My sister has five kids so we’ll be here quite often.” Public health officials say there’s no reason to panic and said most people are OK to drink the tap water, but warn that infants should not.
For more information about manganese and your health, please contact the Calhoun County Public Health Department hotline at 269-969-6852.
The water distribution will be at the city’s fire stations and at these three locations: Battle Creek City Hall, 10 N. Division St. – 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday Battle Creek Department of Public Works, 150 S. Kendall St. – 7:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Friday Battle Creek Police Department, 20 N. Division St. – 8 a.m.-8 p.m. seven days per week The times from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week at city fire stations 1-6: Fire Station 1, 195 E. Michigan Ave. Fire Station 2, 145 N. Washington Ave. Fire Station 3, 222 Cliff St. Fire Station 4, 8 S. 20th St. Fire Station 5, 1170 W. Michigan Ave. Fire Station 6, 2401 Capital Ave. SW You can also go to the Battle Creek city website for information about water distribution.