On Wednesday, September 14th in his first visit to Flint since its ‘water crisis’ started, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump came to try and get a better understanding of the city’s problems. Trump did not give any warning to his visit until the day before, and he still came despite Flint’s mayor Karen Weaver insisting that he is not welcome. He stopped at Bishop National Airport in the afternoon and his first stop was the Flint Water Plant, much to the chagrin of Mayor Weaver. Then not long after, he went to Bethel United Methodist Church to speak, where no local media was allowed in. It was at one point during his speech in the church that Trump started heckling his opponent Hillary Clinton, when Rev. Faith Green Timmons interrupted his speech and told him that he wasn’t invited to give a political speech. He then finished his speech and left as the mixed sounds of protesters and supporters chased after him.

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Accusations and blame riddled Tuesday’s and Thursday’s Congressional hearings on the Flint water contamination.

On Tuesday, former EPA Region 5 Administrator Susan Hedman, former emergency manager Darnell Earley, former Flint mayor Dayne Walling, and VA Tech. Professor Dr. Marc Edwards, all were in Washington D.C.  The hearing consisted mostly of back and forth finger-pointing of who did and didn’t do what. Here is where Rep. Tim Walberg (R-MI) rips into Susan Hedman. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) called the continuing deflection “sickening”. Overall, the main story line stayed the same.

Thursday’s hearing continued to see the blame game, and unfortunately, partisan politics. Governor Rick Snyder and EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy both were apart of the panel. Throughout the hearing, Democrats tended to accuse Gov. Snyder and his administration, while on the other side of the aisle, Republicans continued to blame the EPA. Here’s Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-PA) refusing to believe Snyder’s testimony. On the flipside, here’s Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) placing blame onto McCarthy and the EPA. One of the more unique speakings came from Rep. Gerald Connolly (D-VA) as he not only acknowledged the committees partisan roadblocks, but especially pointed blame on the EM and Gov. Snyder’s administration.

The hearings led to few new facts, and fingers continued to be pointed at the MDEQ, the EPA, Snyder’s administration, and everyone involved.

The primaries have kicked off, and the presidential candidates have been riding the campaign trail harder than ever before. Coming up this Sunday will be another debate, but this time it’s being held at the Whiting Auditorium right here in Flint. With the growing intensity between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, this is one you don’t want to miss.

And of course, DTV will be covering all the details from inside.

Check back here, or watch DTV on Monday for our report.

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A heated democratic battle on the Atlantic in New Hampshire took a backseat as Hillary Clinton took the trip westward to see the Flint water crisis firsthand.

House of Prayer Missionary Church held services as usual, full of big smiles and soulful tunes. After the services came to a close, the crowd didn’t waiver as the entirety of the men and women stayed put and gave a standing ovation to Hillary and Mayor Karen Weaver taking the stage.

The former Secretary of State began her speech by quoting a Psalms verse, saying in addition how nice it is to be with the pastor as they’ve both lived in Pine Bluff, Arkansas.

From there, Hillary quoted just how poorly the state government has been during the crisis, “What happened in Flint is immoral. The children of Flint are just as precious as the children in any part of America.”

Clinton also called attention to a near $600 million dollar bill going through Congress saying the bill needs to be passed, saying “…this is no time for politics as usual.”

“I will fight for you in Flint, no matter how long it takes”, Clinton said as she wrapped up her speech with her commitment to the city until the problem ceases to exist.

“Let’s make sure we take care of the people of Flint and give every child a chance to grow up to their God-given potential!”

Politics and presidential runs aside, Hillary Clinton shined an even brighter spotlight on Flint and its ongoing emergency.

In all of Genesee County, there is one lab technician testing blood lead samples.

Peggy Abram, a medical technologist, is the sole person checking blood samples for lead at the Genesee County Health Department, according to herself and sources. The slow, 30-day response for whether blood tests are positive for lead is more apparent now than ever.

Ms. Abrams says the County Health Department gets over 30 walk-in blood tests a day, plus all of the samples collected at testing clinics like the one held yesterday at Carriage Town Ministries. Abram and her two co-workers say they have asked for extra resources for the lab, but have not received any help.

Families are losing time on knowing what’s in their blood, as the workload increases.

DTV has tried to get more information, but so far has gotten no response from the Genesee County Health Department.

Earlier today in a press conference held in Detroit, Gov. Rick Snyder took the podium once again to add more fuel to fire burning around the Flint water situation.  A sudden spike in cases of Legionella, also known as Legionnaires’ disease and Pontiac fever.  There have been 10 deaths in 87 cases of Legionnaires reported in Genesee County.  5 of the deaths were from people who were on Flint water.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that Legionella bacterium thrives in warm, stagnant water, like the kind found in hot tubs, cooling towers, and hot water tanks.
Infection occurs when the mist or vapor containing the bacteria is inhaled. You can read more about the disease here.

But here’s the real kicker: although all of the cases are not directly connected to Flint water yet, the spikes of Legionnaires coincides with the timing of the initial switch to Flint River water.

This information came after Snyder’s announcement last night that the Michigan National Guard would be in Flint today to hand out water and water filters.

From unhealthy to potentially deadly, the problems faced by Snyder and the people of Flint continue to pile on, and there seems to be no sign of the bad news slowing down.