Michigan Settles Flint Water Litigation for $600 Million (2)

Thousands of Flint, Mich., residents whose drinking water was contaminated with lead will have access to a $600 million victims compensation fund announced Thursday.

Residents of Flint, one of Michigan’s poorest communities, ended up drinking lead-tainted water after city water resources were switched to untreated river water to save money in 2014. The ensuing crisis spurred widespread state and federal efforts to replace lead service lines in the industrial city, and cast light on the ongoing risk from lead pipes across the country.

“What happened in Flint should have never happened, and financial compensation with this settlement is just one ...