DETROIT CUTS OFF WATER TO THOUSANDS UNABLE TO PAY THEIR BILLS By Katie Rucke In Detroit, residents struggle with a dwindling population, high unemployment and rising utilities prices. And now, thousands of the city’s poorest are also without water. Thousands of the some 700,000 people who call Detroit home are currently living without access to water after the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department turned off their water because they hadn’t paid their bills. As the shut-offs occur without warning from the department, residents don’t have time to fill buckets, sinks and tubs with water. This concerns human rights activists, who point out that as a result, “Sick people are left without running water and running toilets. People recovering from surgery cannot wash and change bandages. Children cannot bathe and parents cannot cook.” It’s a practice that has been in place in Detroit for years, even though residents of the city plagued by high unemployment and a poverty rate of around 40 percent have struggled to keep up with water rates that have increased about 119 percent over the past decade. Read On: mintpressnews/detroit-cuts-off-water-to-thousands-unable-to-pay-their-bills/191560/
Posted on: Thu, 29 May 2014 12:35:47 +0000
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