January 5, 2016 – Flint, MI Mayor Dr. Karen Weaver began Tuesday evening’s press conference by saying, “We’re thankful. We didn’t expect this to happen so fast.”
Mayor Weaver declared a State of Emergency for the City of Flint December 14, 2016. January 4, 2016 the Genesee County officials declared a local state of emergency and requested the Governor’s declaration. This afternoon, Governor Rick Snyder showed his support officially declaring a State of Emergency for Genesee County.
In a news release, Governor Snyder said, “The health and welfare of Flint residents is a top priority and we’re committed to a coordinated approach with resources from state agencies to address all aspects of this situation.”
Mayor Weaver said, “This is what Flint deserves. I thank the governor for signing off on this so quickly.” Many people have worked to get to this point, but Flint city council president Kerry Nelson gave the new Mayor credit for her vision. “There was a dark cloud hanging over this city. Now, I can see beams of light busting through,” said Nelson.
Mayor Weaver is also pleased by the progress that’s been made since she took office last year. However, she made it clear there is a lot more work that needs to be done to see real results in the City of Flint. “We’re looking forward to going to the federal level so we can get the funding that the citizens deserve,” Weaver stated.
Now that the Governor has declared an emergency the State Emergency Operations Center in Lansing will be open. Additional staff will be available to assist the Mayor and other local officials in acquiring adequate resources to protect the public health and safety put at risk by the man-made disaster that’s resulted from switching to the Flint River as a water source in 2014.
