"People are forced to drink and bathe with water they describe as over-chlorinated, slimy, and foul-smelling. The only source of water within most of their cells is a small sink that sits atop a toilet. This water is used for drinking, bathing, cooking, and keeping cool from the heat. To cope, many people trade tips on filtering the water through clothes or pieces of bedsheet, but even this practice hardly helps."
"The TDCJ Coffield and Michael Units in Tennessee Colony, Texas, house nearly 8,000 people combined and share a single water treatment system. At these units, it's common knowledge: Don't drink the tap water. Many have directly attributed stomach infections, skin conditions, and even cancer diagnoses to their long-term reliance on this water. Some have said that staff, including certain doctors, have cautioned them to avoid the tap water and to drink bottled water whenever possible."
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice provides drinking water described as over-chlorinated, slimy, and foul-smelling, with the only cell source a small sink atop a toilet used for drinking, bathing, cooking, and cooling. Many people attempt improvised filtration using clothing or bedsheets, which offers little relief. The Coffield and Michael Units, housing nearly 8,000 people combined, share one water treatment system, and many residents avoid tap water entirely. Incarcerated people attribute stomach infections, skin conditions, and cancer to the water. Some medical staff reportedly advise bottled water, but commissary prices make that option inaccessible for many, worsening physical, mental, and financial strain.
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