Legendary pop diva Cher said she's sending more than 180,000 bottles of water to Flint, Michigan, after it came to national attention that residents had been exposed to contaminated water for over a year.
Can say,cause it's on Wires. Been working 4Wks W/Wonderful Co,Icelandic Glacial,2Send 181,000 Bottles of water 2 Flint.
PRES IS Sending MORE — Cher (@cher) Twitter
Cher is partnering with Icelandic Global, an international bottled water company based in Iceland, to distribute water bottles to the city's 100,000 residents.
"I cannot wait for the water to get there to help these people who have been poisoned, because the water they’ve been getting out of their taps has been polluted for so long and remains that way without the state or the federal government stepping in with any substantial plan to resolve this problem,” Cher said in a press release from Icelandic Global released on Saturday.
The water bottles were trucked out on Monday and are due to arrive Wednesday at the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan in Flint. From there, according to the press release, the water will be sent directly to community centers, food banks and fire houses "focusing in on low-income housing areas where 40% of Flint’s population is living below the poverty line."
The plastic bottles will also be recycled, and the earnings will be donated to the city's food banks.
When the dire water situation in Flint became national news at the beginning of this month, Cher voiced her frustration on Twitter, criticizing Gov. Rick Snyder (R) for ignoring the situation, which has been ongoing since April 2014.
GOV.Of MICHIGAN IS A MURDERER HE Made Decision 2GAVE ppl POISON WATER,&NOW MUST SIGN DISASTER BILL.CHILDREN WILL"NEVER"RECOVER #JAILFORRICK
— Cher (@cher) Twitter
Following her announcement, Cher has continued to use her Twitter account, which has over 2.9 million followers, to push for further investigation into the contaminated water and to call on other artists to send aid.
Reading About Michigan's GOV.&HIS EMERGENCY MANAGERS POISON WATER IS TIP OF ICEBERG‼️NEEDS 2B FULL SCALE INVESTIGATION. 4POOR. #STOPGOVNOW
— Cher (@cher) Twitter
MAYBE FELLOW ARTISTS WILL HELP FLINT,IN ANYWAY THEY CHOOSE.BIG SMALL PPL IN"SHOWBIZ"R NOTORIOUSLY GENEROUS& TRULY CARE ABOUT THOSE IN NEED
— Cher (@cher) Twitter
President Barack Obama declared a state of federal emergency in Flint over the weekend.
According to a press release from the White House, FEMA will be delivering water, water filters, water filter cartridges, water test kits and other necessities to the city for the next three months.
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