X

Elon Musk promises to fix Flint's water wherever it's needed

First a Thai diving sub, now Michigan's lead-contaminated water problem.

Sean Hollister Senior Editor / Reviews
When his parents denied him a Super NES, he got mad. When they traded a prize Sega Genesis for a 2400 baud modem, he got even. Years of Internet shareware, eBay'd possessions and video game testing jobs after that, he joined Engadget. He helped found The Verge, and later served as Gizmodo's reviews editor. When he's not madly testing laptops, apps, virtual reality experiences, and whatever new gadget will supposedly change the world, he likes to kick back with some games, a good Nerf blaster, and a bottle of Tejava.
Sean Hollister
2 min read
Elon Musk Answers Your Questions! - 2018 SXSW Conference and Festivals

Elon Musk.

Getty Images

Elon Musk's kid-size sub wasn't able to save the kids trapped in a Thailand cave -- they're safe and sound anyhow -- but now the Tesla, SpaceX and Boring Company entrepreneur is on another humanitarian mission. 

Musk tweeted on Wednesday that he will personally fund fixing the notorious water in Flint, Michigan for any house that has water contamination above FDA levels -- telling CNET and followers he'll organize a weekend in Flint to add filters to houses that still have issues.

Now, you might ask: Doesn't Flint have clean water now -- or at least water below FDA levels? There were reports that Flint's water generally fell below the FDA lead contamination level in January 2017, and a sample of 92 homes suggested they were well below that level this April.

So I asked Musk that exact question. 

His answer: it's partially about fixing some homes that still don't have clean water, and it's partially about raising awareness that the town's water is generally safe once more. 

Musk is inviting Flint, Michigan residents with homes that still have dangerously high levels of lead to reply to his first tweet (the one I embedded at the top of this post) until he can finish creating a flint@x.com email address. He thinks the email will be up and running tomorrow.

Here's a Politifact article that delves into the nuances of whether Flint's water is truly safe today -- in case you, like me, recall a viral video where comedian Michelle Wolf mic-dropped the White House Correspondents' Dinner with the words, "Flint still doesn't have clean water."

Watch this: Thai cave rescue: Elon Musk sends tiny submarine