A top city official admits there has been a “learning curve” after the city of Flint took over bottled water distribution from the state two months ago.
Flint distributes more than 65,000 cases of bottled water a week, comparable to what the state was doing before it handed the job over to the city in September.
The city is working with local churches, the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan and United Way of Genesee County to manage the water distribution program.
Jameca-Patrick Singleton, Flint’s Chief Recovery Officer, admits there’s been a few things city officials had to learn.
“Things like logistics, the amount of water that is needed in the community, delivery schedules and what best works for the residents who we’re doing the home deliveries for,” says Singleton.
Flint’s tap water became contaminated with lead after the ill-fated switch to the Flint River.
Improperly treated river water damaged pipes, which leeched lead into the tap water.
After a year and a half, the city’s drinking water source was switched to the Great Lakes Water Authority.
Nevertheless, damaged lead pipes remain a problem.
Despite government assurances that filtered tap water is safe to drink, many Flint residents continue to rely on bottled water.

It’s likely both numbers could be higher because they don’t reflect other suspected but unconfirmed cases in remote areas.
Although government officials say they’ve distributed water purification tablets and bottled water throughout the island, by late October there were still places where residents said the help hadn’t arrived.
Two weeks after the hurricane, Gambo Rodriguez’s stepfather started vomiting and came down with a fever.
But a week after he was released from the hospital, Cosme de Jesus was bathing and helping his wife wash clothes on the side of the road.
The situation was slightly better in San Juan, where government figures showed 91 percent of customers had service, but on other parts of the island the percentage was as low as 62.
“All of them, because they don’t have water,” Diaz responded.
But even those with running water are struggling to boil it, Chaves Arana said.
There’s also no definitive testing for leptospirosis available in Puerto Rico; in order to confirm cases, samples have to be sent to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention laboratory in Atlanta.
Most patients don’t develop the more serious symptoms associated with the disease, Deseda said, but because leptospirosis can cause kidney or liver failure in some people, public health officials are advising doctors to immediately treat any suspected cases.
They were hoping to work with the CDC to confirm suspected cases in the future, but hadn’t yet been able to do so.

In some cases, publicly-sourced tap may actually be safer since it is usually tested more frequently.
Read on to find out all the things you didn’t know about your drinking water.
Last year was the first time Americans drank more bottled water than soda.
In fact, a recent report found that almost half of all bottled water is actually derived from the tap, but may be further processed or tested for safety.
Tap water is also typically tested for quality and contamination more frequently than bottled water.
However, if you live in one of the 15 million (mostly rural) US households that gets drinking water from a private well, the EPA isn’t keeping an eye on your water quality.
A study in the journal Environmental Research Letters revealed that the plastic that went into the bottled water Americans consumed in 2007 came from the byproducts of roughly 32-54 million barrels of oil.
A recent study from the International Bottled Water Association found that North American companies companies use 1.39 litre of water to make one litre of the bottled stuff.
For every six water bottles Americans use, only one makes it to the recycle bin, according to National Geographic.
So think twice the next time you consider buying a case of bottled water.

The U.S. Air Force has agreed to reimburse the city of Airway Heights for water it’s purchasing from the city of Spokane, months after the revelation that firefighting operations at Fairchild Air Force Base have contaminated the former city’s drinking water system.
The Air Force will pay Airway Heights for up to 440 million gallons of clean tap water with a potential cost of more than $687,000 during the next year, according to Air Force officials based in San Antonio.
Military installations across the country – and their civilian neighbors – are trying to quantify the environmental and physical health effects of perfluorinated compounds known as PFOA and PFOS, which were key ingredients in a foam used to douse ship and aircraft fires.
Lawsuits and tort claims have been filed.
And numerous studies, including some commissioned by the military and the chemicals’ manufacturers, hinted at those health effects decades ago.
Air Force officials have been testing wells in phases for about a year in an attempt to trace how the chemicals migrated through the water table.
Marlene Feist, a spokeswoman for Spokane’s public works department, said the city sold Airway Heights an average of about 92 million gallons per year from 2012 to 2016.
“We’re used to them pumping during the summertime,” she said, “so for them to pump during the winter months is basically no big deal.” She noted that Airway Heights’ total annual water usage, about 450 million gallons, is still less than 2 percent of the 23 billion gallons that Spokane pumps from its system each year.
Cleanup and mitigation of perfluorinated chemicals near more than 400 U.S. military installations may cost up to $2 billion, according to some estimates.
Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray (D-Wash.), and other lawmakers, are pushing to include an extra $62 million for that effort in this year’s National Defense Authorization Act.

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — The state sent an alert to the community for people to use bottled water for eating and drinking.
When it comes to showering or other needs, the state advises people to consult with their doctor first.
Dirt is appearing in the running water because of a collapsed well used to distribute that water, and while lab results show there is no bacteria in the water, the state is still advising people not to use it for certain necessities.
"The most recent sampling we have is from two days ago and yesterday both show no bacteria in the water which is what we are worried about in a situation like this but with this situation it’s a bit transient we know it could fail further," said Chad Fischer.
Teviston received emergency funding from the state to distribute bottled water for families to use, until they come up with a permanent solution.
Bottled waters were delivered at the District Office before the meeting started and that is going to be used for reserves in case for any reason some families did not receive any.
It is unknown how soon residents will have clean water again, but the state says they are working as fast as they can to get it resolved.

When will power come back?
How big will the storm’s impact be on the economy?
Utuado, Puerto Rico The share of Puerto Ricans with running potable water surpassed 85% on Nov. 8 for the first time since hurricane Maria hit the island seven weeks previously.
But in some areas, most people still don’t have running water, and for those who do it’s not clear whether it’s safe to drink.
One such place is the mountain municipality of Utuado—ironically, the site of two major reservoirs.
Running water returned to his home a week ago, but it’s still coming out brown, he says.
Puerto Rico’s water utility, the AAA, says tap water is safe to drink around 72 hours after service is restored, once whatever debris accumulated in the dry pipes is washed away.
All but 18 of AAA’s 114 water filtration plants are running, according to del Valle.
It was toppled by the storm, which also dislodged the equipment that pulled water out of one of the lakes, said Angel Medina, an official at the municipality’s emergency response office.
Here’s a look at how some people in Utuado and elsewhere on the island are getting their water post-Maria.

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — Tulare County community sits off Highway 99, between Pixley and Earlimart.
They say the well is collapsing and producing discolored water.
Self-Help Enterprises Community Development Specialist Elizabeth Burton says the water was tested on Tuesday and showed no signs of bacteria and will be tested again on Thursday.
"Who wants to drink brown water, honestly," Burton said.
Burton says they’re working with the state to secure additional funding for bottled water should that money run out.
And instead of planning for a much-needed replacement well, they’ll speed up the process of getting one now.
"So we are going to be pursuing emergency funds for drilling a new well," Burton said.
"Our concern is for everybody to get water back," said Teviston resident Martin Correa Correa and his father rely on their own wells, so their water is ok.
"We’ve talked to a lot of the neighbors, they’re kind of feeling the same way too," Correa said.
State Water Resources Control Board District Engineer Chad Fischer says they are working swiftly with Teviston Community Services District for a permanent solution to the water problem.

A boil order was issued Wednesday afternoon for water customers on McKnight Road and Union Hill Road in Fairview Heights and will be in place until further notice, according to the O’Fallon Public Works Department.
The boil order is a result of a water main break at the intersection of Meckfessel Drive and Union Hill Road.
During a boil water order, water customers should take the following measures to protect themselves from consuming potentially contaminated water: ▪ Bottled water should be used for drinking, cooking, washing fresh fruits/vegetables, hand washing and tooth brushing.
▪ The affected tap water may be used for washing dishes if a dishwasher is used.
If dishes are hand washed, boiled or bottled water should be used.
▪ The affected tap water may be used for household cleaning.
▪ Purge the water-using fixtures and appliances of standing water and ice, such as refrigerator ice makers or coffee makers.
The O’Fallon Public Works Department will notify customers when the boil order has been lifted.
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Watters is one of 50 or so residential well users now getting bottled water from Chemours because tests on their wells showed levels of GenX above the state’s health advisory goal of 140 parts per trillion.
Watters and his son are taking baths at work while his wife uses bottled water from Chemours to take showers in a trailer the family owns.
"I can’t drink it, give it to my animals, I don’t even want to shower in it.
A lot of people who attended the forum had questions about the possible health effects of GenX.
“What our data can show, is that if these chemicals are in the water, that they actually are in your blood or are in the urine.
Knappe is the scientist whose research team discovered GenX in the Cape Fear River in 2013.
However, the GenX and other fluorochemical compounds that ended up in private wells near the plant were likely airborne.
Chemours first tested wells within a mile from the center of the Fayetteville Works plant—now the company is testing an additional 450 wells within a mile from the plant’s boundary.
State Working With Chemours To Find Permanent Solution Kritzer said state officials are working with Chemours to find a permanent solution to the problem for contaminated wells, including installing effective filters, digging deeper wells or tying residents into the county water supply.
Brown, 68, is currently getting bottled water from Chemours.

The school, along with all city of Ottawa water customers, remained under a boil order advisory until at least Thursday morning.
Photo by John Jared Hawks/The Ottawa Herald Providing healthy water for consumption was a top concern in Ottawa Tuesday and Wednesday after the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) issued a boil water advisory.
City officials said Wednesday morning a water sample was sent to KDHE lab in Topeka and they were awaiting the results.
City officials said any updates will be released when they become available.
The Ottawa school district provided bottled water Wednesday for students and staff as a cautionary measure, Dr. Jeanne Stroh, superintendent, said Wednesday.
We had great students at the middle and high schools who also helped.
We had all the water delivered about 7:30 a.m. or a quarter to 8.
We don’t want anybody to get sick.” Starbucks, located inside Price Chopper, 120 E. 19th St., Ottawa, was closed Wednesday because of the boil order, and will not reopen until it is rescinded, a manager said.
“We are pretty much dried up,” he said Wednesday morning.
There is always a run, people need water.” Waymire said Price Chopper provided bottled water to Ransom Memorial Hospital and Ottawa University.