Jackson Free Press

Mayor Tony Yarber reiterated during a press conference at City Hall Wednesday night that the city’s drinking water system is safe, while at the same time mentioning meetings with Jackson Public Schools superintendent about needed renovations to the corrosion control system.

“I spent a little time today with the superintendent,” the mayor said. “He and I will wrap around. I wanted to make sure that I meet with the team so that…the message will be uniform.”

The city also discussed the possible repair plan to the corrosion control system, estimating the total cost at around $500,000. Director of Public Works Kishia Powell said the city applied for a grant to pay for the repairs but did add that if the money did not come from outside sources, it would come out of the city budget.

Read more about the city of Jackson and the Mississippi State Department of Health's statements on lead levels here.

Note: This post was reported and written by Tim Summers Jr.

A news release from the Mississippi State Department of Health about City of Jackson drinking water is reproduced in its entirety below:

Today the Mississippi State Department of Health– after consultation with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Environmental Protection Agency, is advising all residents who receive their drinking water from the City of Jackson Water System to take the following precautions:

· Before using tap water for drinking or cooking, run your tap on cold for one to two minutes; for more detailed information visit www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/tips/water.htm; · Households should never use hot water for drinking or cooking; · Any child five years of age or younger and any pregnant woman should use filtered water (NSF53 certified filter http//info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU) or bottled water for drinking and cooking; · Baby formula should be “ready-to-feed” or prepared using only filtered water or bottled water; and · Parents with children six years or younger should contact their child’s pediatrician or primary care provider to ensure adequate lead screening and blood testing have been performed.

“Although the majority of home lead testing performed identified no lead, or lead below the action level of 15 ppb, we are issuing these recommendations as a special precaution for young children and pregnant women,” said State Epidemiologist Dr. Thomas Dobbs.

“It’s important to remember simple measures, such as flushing the faucet for one to two minutes, can markedly reduce lead levels in tap water,” added Dobbs.

The Mississippi State Department of Health will mail the above health recommendations about lead to all customers on the City of Jackson Water System, and will closely monitor the City of Jackson’s progress to reduce the corrosiveness of water. Corrosive water leads to leaching of lead in some older homes where plumbing contains lead pipes or lead solder.

“We believe these precautions should remain in place at least six months while the City of Jackson makes the necessary changes required to stabilize the alkalinity and pH levels in the system. These changes should ensure better optimization of corrosion in the Jackson Water System, which should lead to minimal leaching of lead in home plumbing,” said Director of Health Protection Jim Craig.

House Speaker Philip Gunn released a statement defending his position on the state flag, after all filed bills to change the state flag referred to the House Rules Committee died today. No Senate or House flag bill made it out of committee by today's deadline.

Gunn's statement is below, verbatim:

"For anyone to suggest I have surrendered or backed up on my position of changing the flag is simply not true," said Speaker of the House Philip Gunn. "I have not wavered in my viewpoint that we need a different flag to represent Mississippi. I have spoken with many House members both individually and collectively and have tried to convince them to adopt my view."

“I have explored every option from taking legislative action to change the flag to adopting two official flags, but we cannot get a consensus on how to address the issue,” he continued. "I will continue to stand by my view that changing the flag is the right thing to do. The flag is going to change. We can deal with it now or leave for future generations to address. I believe our state needs to address it now. I am disappointed that nothing took shape this year, but I will continue this effort."

Breaking news: This morning, the Senate Accountability, Efficiency and Transparency Committee passed the SB 2162 to the full Senate floor over the objections of Sen. David Blount, D-Jackson, who accused the bill's proponents of trying to "control" the airport.

Here is the full report. Also, read this story from yesterday detailing why the bill could cause the FAA to close the airport and why it may present conflict-of-interest concerns for the state.