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WEDNESDAY | NOV. 16, 2016
The Daily News
Muncie water safe for consumption City supply cleaner than other communities'
Alan Hovorka Daily News Reporter This week’s 24-hour boil order aside, Muncie’s water supply appears to be safe — especially when it comes to levels of lead, a contaminant that has rocked communities across the country, including several in Indiana. “It’s good to my knowledge,” said Lee Florea, a hydrologist. “I haven’t seen any issues with lead or any other things we trace.”
Dangerously high lead levels were a national story in Flint, Michigan, when the city stopped buying water from Detroit — Flint spent $21 million on water from Detroit in 2011 — in an attempt to save money for the financially struggling city. This move was supposed to lead to a county-wide water treatment system, but it was not completed in time. In April 2014, the city began drawing water from the Flint River as a temporary solution. The river was corrosive, not treated properly by Flint and not properly tested by the state. Lead in the city’s pipes began to leach into the water, poisoning thousands of residents, including children.
Florea serves as assistant director of research at the Indiana Geological Survey at Indiana University. He previously worked as a Ball State professor in the department of geological sciences, including on the project “Water Quality Indiana,” a Virginia Ball Center Project that investigated the water quality of York Prairie Creek. Florea has visited Indiana American Water’s treatment plant on the southeast side of Muncie with students and approves of them. “After touring American Water, I’m confident it’s clean when it leaves there,” Florea said. “It’s just those unknowns.” The facilities there were last renovated
in 2012, when the company invested $12 million in upgrades to replace centuryold equipment, said Joe Loughmiller, spokesperson for Indiana American Water. The company serves Muncie and Ball State, as well as some 30 water systems in the state. The company has spent millions of dollars in upgrading the city’s water infrastructure since then. Just last year, the company spent more than $10 million on storage tank refurbishments, pipeline replacements, fire hydrants, valves, meters and service line replacements and other equipment, Loughmiller said.
See WATER, page 4
Reaching new
heights Lauren DeLorenzo Daily News Reporter
W
Ball State student creates drone videos, featured on local T V stations
Lauren DeLorenzo Daily News Reporter
hen picturing the country’s most beautiful features, the landscape of Southern Indiana may not immediately come to mind. But one Ball State student has used drone footage of Ball State and parts of Martinsville to showcase the beauty of Indiana, particularly in the fall. Nevin Markitan, a sophomore telecommunications major, has always
been interested in video production, and found that drones were an interesting new way to experiment with video footage. “I really wanted something that would improve the cinematic look of the stuff I wanted to do,” Markitan said. “Plus, I’ve always been a big fan of just RC [Remote Control] stuff, and so the drones have a combination of that.” See DRONE, page 4
Terence K Lightning Jr. // DN
ALUMNUS CREATES TRAVEL APP
INSIDE
COMMUNITY POLICING
UPD chief aims to increase campus relations. Also, read our columnist's take on Lunch with a Cop. PG 5
FOOTBALL
Traveler allows students studying abroad to save photos, audio Kirsten Wamsley Daily News Reporter In 2012, an app was created that followed students abroad and helped in their travels by saving photos, audio and
sketches along their journey. Ball State alumnus Kyle Parker created the app, called The Traveler, with the help of his partner, Mark Caravello. Parker is now the app's senior software engineer. Their aim was to aid students at the university with study abroad travels. The app saves media according to the user’s location. The app made its first debut in 2012 when the College of Architecture and Planning department traveled to Chicago. Students were able to track what they saw and carry that back to campus, making it easier to transfer work from the field to the classroom. The app is not only used for CAP students. It has been used for family and consumer sciences, the journalism department and the Honors College. Parker, using connections with Samsung, presented the app in a conference with hopes of simply improving the app for students. However, it became much larger than that. See APP, page 6
Grace Ramey // DN
Cardinals bring 'championship' mindset to final games. PG 3
Ball State’s forward Franko House attempts to push past Indiana State’s players during the game Tuesday in John E. Worthen Arena. The Cardinals shot 38 percent from the field and lost 80-74.
BASKETBALL PHOTOS
Relive the men's home opener with our photo gallery.
Sloppiness plagues Ball State in home-opening loss
KNOW YOUR RIGHTS
Elizabeth Wyman Assistant Sports Editor
ONLINE
Learn what you can and can't do when it comes to talking with police.
CAR ACCIDENTS
Where do the most car accidents tend to happen on campus?
Ball State men’s basketball corralled two consecutive offensive rebounds with 12 minutes left in regulation against Indiana State, but failed to capitalize. The second half ended with a 64-64 tie, and after overtime the Cardinals’ 16 offensive rebounds weren’t enough to overcome their low shooting percentage in their 80-74 loss to Indiana State Tuesday.
See BASKETBALL, page 3
SERVING BALL STATE UNIVERSITY AND MUNCIE COMMUNITIES SINCE 1922
Cardinals fall 80-74 in overtime matchup against ISU