Residents of Flint, Michigan, have been drinking bottled water due to a public health emergency that declared the drinking water to be unsafe. Photo by debbiekh40 / Twitter

The Saginaw Chippewa Tribe donated about 1,000 cases of bottled water to help residents of Flint, Michigan, where a public health emergency has been declared.

High levels of lead have been detected in the blood of children and infants in Flint. The water system also has seen elevated levels of chlorine. Both chemicals can lead to serious health issues, especially among the young and the elderly.

To address the situation, the tribe teamed up with the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan to distribute the water. The donation totaled about 24,000 bottles of water.

“The main focus of this donation is to bring relief to the people of Flint and perhaps make a difference with the gift of (Biish) water," Chief, Steve Pego said in a press release.

The tribe itself has placed a high priority on water quality. Testing last year showed high levels of E. coli in the Chippewa River.

Get the Story:
Tribe donates 24,000 water bottles to Flint (The Mt. Pleasant Morning Sun 10/7)
Panel advises city leaders to switch to Detroit water, residents frustrated by secrecy (WNEM 10/7)
Flint police block some media, public from water advisory meeting (MLive 10/7)

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