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Feds say everyone in Flint can drink filtered tap water

Stephanie Smith, left, Jimmie Thompson, center, and Otis Ross, right, share a laugh in-between residents coming to get water at Prince of Peace Baptist Church Wednesday, June 22, 2016 in northwest Flint. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday the church gives out water for free from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. "My brother lives in Atlanta. I try to tell him he doesn't realize how bad the water crisis is here," Ross said. "You can't imagine it until you get here." (Mark Felix/The Flint Journal-MLive.com via AP) LOCAL TELEVISION OUT; LOCAL INTERNET OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT Stephanie Smith, left, Jimmie Thompson, center, and Otis Ross, right, share a laugh in-between residents coming to get water at Prince of Peace Baptist Church Wednesday, June 22, 2016 in northwest Flint. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday the church gives out water for free from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. "My brother lives in Atlanta. I try to tell him he doesn't realize how bad the water crisis is here," Ross said. "You can't imagine it until you get here." (Mark Felix/The Flint Journal-MLive.com via AP) LOCAL TELEVISION OUT; LOCAL INTERNET OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT

By Associated Press June 23, 2016 1 min read

FLINT, Mich. (AP) – The federal government says filtered tap water is safe for everyone in Flint, Michigan, lifting a recommendation that pregnant women, nursing mothers and children under 6 drink only bottled water to avoid lead exposure.

The announcement Thursday is based on tests of filters that have been distributed for months for free by the state of Michigan and the federal government. The Environmental Protection Agency says the filters remove or reduce lead to well below the action level of 15 parts per billion.

The EPA says samples from high-risk areas in Flint have been coming back at less than 1 part per billion.

Flint used the Flint River as a water source for 18 months, but lead leached from old pipes at homes because the water wasn’t treated to control corrosion.