The FBI has joined the Justice Department’s investigation into the lead-contaminated-water crisis in Flint, Mich., according to local reports.
U.S. Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Gina Balaya told the Flint Journal that the FBI is one of a number of federal law enforcement groups working on the investigation.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office is working with a multi-agency investigation team on the Flint water contamination matter, including the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, EPA’s Office of Inspector General and EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division,” Balaya told the paper.
It’s rare for the U.S. Attorney’s Office to confirm an investigation, as Balaya did last month, and rarer still for it to confirm federal law enforcement involvement.
In April 2014, Flint switched its water source from the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department, which draws water from Lake Huron, to a local agency that also would take water from the lake.
However, the infrastructure needed to get water from Lake Huron to Flint under the new agency was not yet built, so an emergency manager appointed by Gov. Rick Snyder decided to take water from the Flint River as a temporary measure.
The water from the Flint River is so polluted and acidic that the water ate away at the lead pipes bringing water to the city’s homes.
The state did not require Flint to put any corrosion-control chemicals into the water. Those chemicals could have prevented the leaching of lead into the drinking water. The water is now being treated with those chemicals, but the corrosion controls need to once again build back up on the city’s pipes.
The crisis has gained national attention. Some of the top officials involved are scheduled to be in Washington on Wednesday to testify in front of the House Oversight Committee.
