The former mayor of Flint testifies that Gov. Snyder made a last-minute appeal to have Flint stay on Detroit water instead of changing over to the Flint River, which triggered the Flint water emergency.
Dayne Walling testified in the court hearings of 4 current and former officials with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality who face criminal charges in the Flint water case.
Former mayor Walling says the governor met with him and Ed Kurtz, who at that time was the Flint Emergency Manager. Walling said that Snyder asked them to give Detroit a chance to make a final offer for a long-term water contract. Flint was being run by Kurtz in the face of financial problems in Flint. A few days after the meeting, in 2013, Kurtz went ahead with plans to have Flint join a new water system which was planned for Genesee County. That led to the use of water from the Flint River as a temporary water source. The improper treatment of the Flint River water caused lead contamination of the water.
