No Way To Treat Our People: FEMA Trailer Residents 30 Months after Katrina- Louisiana Justice...

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NO WAY TO TREAT OUR PEOPLE:

FEMA Trailer Residents 30 Months after Katrina



Page 1 No Way to Treat Our People

TABLE OF CONTENTS

MISSION AND PURPOSE………………………….………………………………………………………………………….2

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS……………………………….………………………………………………………………………3

FOREWORD…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….4

PART I. BACKGROUND ON FEMA TRAILERS IN LOUISIANA……………..5

INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..52008 LOUISIANA JUSTICE INSTITUTE FEMA TRAILER OUTREACH PROJECT……….7

PART II. CRISIS ON THE GULF COAST: HOUSING AND HEALTH ..8

NEED FOR REPLACEMENT HOUSING………..…………………………………………………………………………………….9A Lack of Resources………………..…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….9A Lack of Affordablility….…..……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….11

NEED FOR HEALTH CARE…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..12The D eteriorating M ental Health of T railer Residents………………………………………………………………..12The Deteriorating Physical Health of Trailer Residents ….…………………………………………………….14

PART III. STORIES FROM FEMA TRAILER PARK RESIDENTS………....15

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE TRAILER PARK —FEMA’s Dirty Secret in Baker, Louisiana…………………………………………………………………………………...15

SEPARATE AND NOT EQUAL —Segregation for Disabled Residents in Port Allen, Louisiana……………………………..……………………….21Stories from Port Allen, Louisiana………………………………………………….………………………………………………….23

ROAD TO NOWHERE —Tens of Thousands of Homeowners Still in Trailers……..…………………………………………………………….25Stories from H omeowners Living in FE MA Trailers in New Orleans………………………………………25

PART IV. CALL TO ACTION FOR FEMA TRAILER RESIDENTS…..….27



Page 2No Way to Treat Our People

MISSION AND PURPOSE

The Louisiana Justice Institute (LJI) is a

non-profit legal advocacy organization devoted to

fostering social justice campaigns across the state of

Louisiana. LJI understands that as a local civil rights

organization, it can and must serve as an agent for social change. The creation of LJI was

responsive to a specific and urgent need to resurrect capacity for statewide, systemic, legal

advocacy on behalf of impoverished communities and communities of color. LJI believes a

community shared vision for social justice, combined with the opportunity and resolve to bring

lasting change, will produce genuine, equitable recovery in Louisiana.

The Children’s Defense

Fund (CDF) is a non-profit

advocacy organization that has

worked relentlessly for 35 years toensure a level playing field for all children. CDF work’s with individuals, communities, and policy

makers to enact, fund, and implement public policy and promote successful programs that life

children out of poverty, protect them from abuse and neglect, ensure access to health care and

quality education, and provide a moral and spiritual foundation to help children succeed with the

support of caring adults and communities.




ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The housing crisis along the Gulf Coast after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita is anational tragedy. With thousands of families facing uncertain futures for long-term habitationneeds, we advocates faced the daunting task of documenting this problem. Fortunately,Louisiana Justice Institute has developed a tremendous relationship with the organizers of theStudent Hurricane Network, and it was with the assistance of scores of students from lawschools across the country that LJI and Children’s Defense Fund were able to compile thedata for this report. The law student volunteers that assisted LJI with this project were fromthe following schools: American University Washington College of Law, Howard University,

Fordham Law, Brooklyn Law School, University of Nebraska College of Law, University of Texas School of Law, University of Oklahoma College of Law, Cardozo School of Law,Washburn University School of Law, and the Northern Illinois University College of Law.

In addition, we must acknowledge the advocacy of our many friends and partners on the

ground along the Gulf Coast, who are working to alleviate the suffering and continued

victimization of FEMA trailer residents.




FOREWORD

Nothing could prepare us for the sight of children running through the Baker, Louisiana

FEMA trailer encampment during the middle of the school day. Where are the parents? Why

aren’t these children in school? More importantly, why are all these families still here 2 1/2 years

after Katrina?

There really is only one answer to all three of these questions — our government has

created several communities of disposable people post-hurricanes Katrina and Rita. These

communities hold individuals who have no guaranteed right to return to their homes —notwithstanding all the international conventions and treaties calling for same. We have created

in Louisiana “Katrina Tribes,” comprised of individuals without permanent homes, subject to

dislocation through relocation at the governments’ will.

No Way to Treat Our People serves as a Call to Action. It is an indictment of our

failed response efforts to this disaster, and provides an opportunity for those willing to listen, to

hear the voices of those left behind in FEMA trailers. But we must leave these victims with

more than the tourist-bus-operator recounting of their suffering. So No Way to Treat Our People proposes a collective response and call for funding redress that makes our people whole.




PART I.

BACKGROUND ON FEMA TRAILERS IN LOUISIANA Introduction

The recovery process following the 2005 hurricanes Katrina and Rita has been varied,

with numerous successes and failures. Although the national attention has shifted from the Gulf

Coast, many of its residents continue to struggle to rebuild their lives and return to a stable

living situation. Two and a half years after Hurricane Katrina made landfall, approximately

100,000 residents of the Gulf Coast still find themselves housed in trailers provided to them by

the Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA.FEMA trailers first began arriving in the hurricane-damaged Gulf South in early

October of 2005. Although FEMA quickly distributed some trailers to certain families, there

were widespread reports of delays in trailer delivery, and many news agencies noted thousands

of families remained without a housing option while FEMA trailers were stored in mass

quantities throughout the affected region without being put to use. FEMA established

numerous options for individuals in need of temporary housing. Homeowners unable to move

back into their homes could place their FEMA trailers on property they owned. Others could

take residence in a trailer situated in a FEMA trailer park located on land that was either

publicly owned or rented by a governmental agency. Still other residents, both homeowners and

renters, could receive trailers and place same on the land of neighbors, friends or relatives. 1

Although the plan FEMA presented to address housing had the potential to reach

residents of all demographics, a significant number of residents and their families were unable to

access the resources FEMA provided. Homeowners in neighborhoods or towns in which basic

infrastructure (e.g., electricity and sewage) was not quickly reestablished were denied requests

for FEMA trailers. This included all of the Lower 9th Ward, where electricity was notreestablished until summer of 2006.2 Additionally, individuals who were unable to demonstrate

independent residence in hurricane-affected zones at the time of the storms were deemed

ineligible for FEMA assistance. The uniquely Southern style of extended family residence

did not fit into the cookie cutter family molds FEMA expected, resulting in families being split




apart and denied assistance on a large scale basis.3 Moreover, as domestic violence increased

due to family stresses during and post-flood water recession, even abused spouses faced

difficulty getting independent assistance and many stayed to face the violence rather than face

homelessness.

In early 2006, FEMA trailer residents began to report health problems such as rashes,

itchy eyes and difficulty breathing. Some independent groups, such as the Sierra Club, began

preliminary testing of the indoor air of the FEMA trailers and found high levels of

formaldehyde present.4 Groups of trailer residents began lobbying FEMA to do something

about the potential health risk they were facing and at least conduct testing of individual

trailers.5 However, it was not until the summer of 2007, when the Environmental ProtectionAgency (EPA) advised FEMA the levels of formaldehyde in trailers were too high and might

pose a threat to the health of occupants, that FEMA moved to temporarily suspend

deployment and sale of travel trailers and park model recreational vehicles.6

By early 2007 many parishes in Louisiana began to enforce new or preexisting local

ordinances that prohibited locating a trailer on residential streets. In January of 2007

Jefferson Parish set a March 31, 2007 deadline for the removal of trailers from private

property.7

The St. Tammany Parish deadline was originally set for March but extended to June 2007.8 Kenner, Louisiana moved extended its deadline through May 2008.9

Nevertheless, thousands of trailer residents have been and continue to be evicted through these

city and parish-based ordinances.

Residents in trailer parks did not fare better. Pressure from homeowners and local

businesses forced many parish governments to shut-down trailer sites. Instead of facing

evictions, many thousands of residents had their trailers moved from one trailer park site to

another, often multiple times, disrupting schooling for children, healthcare and jobs.

In November of 2007 FEMA began issuing large numbers of eviction notices to

residents living in FEMA trailer parks throughout the Gulf Coast.10 FEMA would begin to

stagger closures between the months of November 2007 and May 2008.11 By January 2008,

over half of the trailer parks in New Orleans had already been closed.




On Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2008, FEMA publically acknowledged the study

by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which study revealed

unacceptably high levels of formaldehyde in FEMA trailers.12 The CDC recommended all

residents be moved from trailers by June 2008 when the formaldehyde levels would peak with

the summer heat.

2008 Louisiana Justice Institute FEMA Trailer Outreach Project

FEMA trailer residents are extremely vulnerable. Those residents still living in trailers

do not have the resources to move into a more permanent situation, either because of a lack of

resources to rebuild their homes or finding an alternate living situation. Homeowners are either

waiting on insurance or Road Home program money or else have not been able to acquire

sufficient funds to being their rebuilding. Additionally, public and affordable housing options

have significantly decreased since the storms due to both a sharp rise in rental prices and also

the approval of the demolition of New Orleans’s public housing facilities.

Considering these circumstances, in early January of 2008, LJI coordinated an

interview and outreach project aimed at FEMA trailer residents across Louisiana. This project

was intended to build upon information gathered through previous survey projects 13 and

research by CDF on the status of children living in FEMA trailer parks. LJI and CDFfocused on providing residents with information on local housing, medical, and legal resources.

With the help of law student volunteers from across the country, we conducted outreach to over

500 residents and interviewed over 150 families. The data provided in this report comes entirely

from the interviews conducted in January—February 2008.

The law schools volunteers were each equipped with and distributed the Louisiana

Justice Institute Local Resource Guide (the Guide), which contains contact information for

organizations and programs that provide indispensible services to individuals traversing therecovery and rebuild process. The volunteers interviewed and surveyed the FEMA trailer

occupants to gauge problems and, in many instances actually assisted the residents in making

contact and with follow-up services for support, especially for the elderly and/or disabled

residents who found maneuvering the relief bureaucracy nearly impossible.




PART II.

CRISIS ON THE GULF COAST:HOUSING AND HEALTH

Those residents of Louisiana and the Gulf South who continue to find themselves

housed in FEMA trailers are in a dire living situation. Over the past two and a half years since

Hurricane Katrina made landfall, these individuals and families have been unable to move

themselves to a more permanent and adequate housing situation for a number of reasons. Some

are homeowners who have been unable to return their homes to a livable condition or rebuild on

their property to replace their lost lodgings. Others are former public housing residents or renters who have been unable to locate a permanent living situation which they can afford.

Additionally, other factors prevent trailer residents from moving from the trailers even if they had

a place to go.

The habitation of FEMA trailers has become a severe crisis. In November 2007

FEMA announced it would stagger closures of its trailer parks until May 2008. For many

residents still living in trailers in parks, this meant they had no choice but to leave their trailer once

the time of park closure came, regardless of whether they had any other place to go. This is adrastic situation considering the fact 55% of FEMA trailer residents surveyed reported they

had no alternative housing and expected to be homeless if removed from their trailers.

Meanwhile, only 1/6 of residents reported they have received an actual eviction notice from

FEMA.

This crisis worsened in early February of 2008 when FEMA acknowledged the

formaldehyde in its trailers were at levels which were extremely harmful. The push to remove

occupants from trailers gained strength, while residents’ anxiety about their futures rose. What

follows is a summary of the responses provided by surveyed residents concerning what factors

have prevented them from moving to permanent housing.




NEED FOR REPLACEMENT HOUSING

A Lack of Resources

Following the damage done by the 2005 hurricanes, it quickly became apparent that

those homeowners who lacked significant personal resources would have a difficult time repairing

their homes. While 80% of the FEMA trailer residents who were former homeowners

responded they had homeowners insurance, only 54% had flood insurance, which made the

possibility of presenting a successful claim for a water-damaged home extremely difficult. In

addition, the money homeowners received from insurance claims was often insufficient to cover

the costs of returning their homes to condition adequate for human habitation.

Due to the insufficient funds available to many homeowners, a number of governmental

agencies began to distribute money to facilitate the repair and rebuilding of homes, the most

significant being the Road Home Program in Louisiana.14 Although these funds have allowed

some displaced residents to return their homes to a condition which allows their occupation, the

monies distributed by various governmental agencies have clearly failed many residents in their

efforts to return their lives to a semblance of the normality of pre-Katrina life. A mere 6% of

FEMA trailer residents reported receiving money from the Louisiana Recovery Authority,

while approximately 1/3 reported receiving money from FEMA for home repairs.

The state of Louisiana

created the Road Home Program to

give Louisiana homeowners a number

of options when deciding how they

wished to respond to the state of

their hurricane-damaged house.

Many residents view the RoadHome Program as the solution to

their present living situation. Unfortunately, the Road Home Program is rife with problems.15

Many homeowners complain of delays in the process and the difficulty of dealing with the

bureaucracy of the program.16 Although nearly 90% of the respondent homeowners presently

Road Home Money

8676

48

0

20

40

60

80

100

Number of

Homeow ners

Applicants to the

Road Home Program

Received Road

Home Money




living in FEMA trailers applied for Road Home funds, only slightly more than half of these

homeowners have actually received anything. Of those residents who have received money,

approximately 20% complain that the money has been insufficient to adequately repair their

home.

Fifty-six percent of FEMA trailer residents owned their homes or lived with a

homeowner at the time of the storm. Although more than one third of FEMA trailer occupants

say that they have undertaken some form of repairs on their homes, a mere 1 in 11 of

homeowners say that the repairs are complete. The typical homeowner cited many resources

they will need in order to prepare themselves for leaving their trailer. The vast majority said they

need more money so that they will be able to complete the repairs on their homes; approximately10% specifically requesting

Road Home Program money;

12% needing legal assistance

to help manage successions

and maneuver the bureaucracy

of various programs; and

almost all desiring the most

precious commodity, i.e., time

to complete repairs without

having to pay for temporary

housing.

Other factors have prevented homeowners from rebuilding and repairing. Contractor

fraud is a frequent occurrence, and many residents have lost significant portions of their

rebuilding resources to contractors. Additionally, many homeowners complain that contractors

do poor work, requiring homeowners to pay for additional hours to repair the poor work, or hirenew contractors to redo the repairs. An astonishing 60% of the survey respondents state they

are unhappy with the work performed by their contractors. The City of New Orleans’

demolition of houses is also preventing certain families from returning to their homes. The

Resourced Needed by Homeowners

to Leave their Trailer

12%

54%

5%

9%

11%

4%

1%

4%

Legal Assis tance

Money

Employment/ Finding

Employment

Locating Affordable

Housing

Contractors

Transportation

Furniture

Time




demolition campaign undertaken by the city has been poorly organized and left many families,

some who even had received Road Home money, returning to empty lots.

A La ck of Affordability

Many markets have changed in Louisiana following the 2005 hurricanes. One of the

most notable is the housing market: prices skyrocketed following the storms. Now, families and

individuals who prior to the storm were able to support themselves renting are now forced to rely

on publicly subsidized housing.

U n f o r t u n a t e l y ,

publicly subsidized housing isalso rare in post-Katrina

Louisiana. On December

20, 2007, the New Orleans

City Council approved the

demolition of four large

public housing developments,

which had been closed since

Hurricane Katrina and madethe subject of resident lead litigation. Not only are low income residents now unable to locate

affordable housing, but public housing is no longer a viable option for most.

The crisis for FEMA trailer residents deepens as a result of this lack of affordable

rental housing because they will need an alternative housing option upon being forced from their

trailers. Twenty-six percent of former renters reported they need assistance locating affordable

housing in order to move from their trailers. Another 24% reported they do not have sufficient

resources to move from the trailers. A desperate situation is arising for these residents as theyface the certainty of eviction. A number of programs do exist to aid FEMA trailer residents

and displaced residents move to a more permanent living situation. Nonetheless, most residents

do not know of the existence of these programs, or are unable to deal with the bureaucracy.

Resources Needed by Former

Renters to Move out of Trailer

9%

32%

15%

26%

1%

9%6% 2%

Legal Assistance

Money

Employment/ Finding

EmploymentLocating Affordable

HousingContractors

Transportation

Furniture

Medical Assistance




In addition to affordable housing, nearly 20% of former renters living in FEMA trailers

noted that it was the poor economic

situation which was preventing them from

attaining a more permanent living

situation. These residents stated that

factors such as inability to earn rent

money and afford the high cost of utilities

made the option of leaving their trailer for

a more permanent living situation an

impossibility. New Orleans is suffering from an acute shortage of housing that

has nearly doubled the cost of rental units in the city. This shortage threatens recovery for the

entire region, and makes living in New Orleans nearly impossible for residents who decided to

return against the odds.17 Before the storm, more than half of the city’s population rented

housing. Government attention to this rental crisis has not yet been seen or felt by any of the

trailer residents surveyed for this report.

NEED FOR HEALTH CARE

The D eteriorating M ental Health of Trailer Residents

Life in a FEMA trailer is extremely trying for most residents. After two and a half years of being displaced from their homes and exiled from the life they knew prior to the storms,nearly all residents reported suffering from depression. This finding is consistent with the mostcomprehensive survey conducted of people affected by Hurricane Katrina. Presented to theU.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs Ad hocSubcommittee on Disaster Recovery, the study found the percentage of pre-hurricane

residents of the affected areas in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi who have mentaldisorders has increased significantly compared to the situation five to eight months after thehurricane. The director of the study, Dr. Ronald Kessler, Professor of Health Care Policy atHarvard Medical School, noted the big surprise, which is that Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which typically goes away in a year for most disaster survivors, has increased: 21%have the symptoms vs. 16% in 2006. Common symptoms include the inability to stop thinking




about the hurricane, nightmares and emotional numbness.

On the other hand, a Mississippi Gulf Coast survey by the National Center for Disaster Preparedness at Columbia University found that half of parents said their childrenhad developed emotional or behavior problems after the storm. About two-thirds weredepressed; nearly as many felt afraid. Heidi Sinclair, a pediatrician who supervises mobilepediatric care vans that serve schools and FEMA trailer parks for evacuees, found only a smallpercentage of the mental health needs of children is being met, again, consistent with theresponses from the survey.

Families have been displaced to different locations, and nearly every FEMA trailer resident

has dealt with the death of a friend or family member since the storms. Delivery of mental health

aid to FEMA trailer residents has been extraordinarily minimal, with only 3% of FEMA trailer

residents reporting that they had received any form of mental health care in March of 2007.

According to an article released in March of 2007 in the Annals of Emergency

Medicine , the rate of major depression in FEMA trailer residents was more than 7 times the

US rate.18 Additionally, 20% of trailer residents had contemplated suicide. As time has

passed and residents remain housed in poorly designed trailer, the complexities of recovery

services have further disillusioned the individuals. The frustrations of working to recover from

their displacement had worn down many residents.

Approximately 7.5% of FEMA trailer residents say that the major difficulty preventing

them from achieving a permanent housing situation is their mental health issues and locating

appropriate assistance. Many of these residents report that they have given up fighting to leave

their trailers because they can no longer handle the disappointment and stress alone. These

residents note that they have been unable to locate appropriate assistance to aid them in

addressing the numerous difficulties keeping them in the trailer and therefore feel stuck.

Appropriate mental health care was never provided to these displaced people, and it has notbeen an infrequent occurrence that citizens of Louisiana have simply given up fighting to stay

alive.




The Deteriorating Physical Health of Trailer Residents

In March of 2007, 39% of FEMA trailer residents had health insurance. In January of 2008, this percentage had dropped to 33%. Although this drop isn’t drastic, new developments

made public concerning the dangers to human health posed by occupation of FEMA trailers

suggest that now more than ever FEMA trailer residents need access to healthcare.

As early as March of 2006, a mere 6 months after landfall of Hurricane Katrina,

FEMA began to recognize the health danger of occupying the trailers. Innumerable resident

complaints of rashes and respiratory problems, along with testing by the Sierra Club

demonstrating that formaldehyde levels in the trailers were harmful to human health, were not

enough to motivate FEMA to take action. Finally, in February of 2008, the Center for

Disease Control (CDC) publicly acknowledged the dangers of formaldehyde within the

trailers. Some residents have been living within these trailers for two and a half years, and the

CDC acknowledges that they are unsure of what effect this level of exposure will have on

human beings. Up to this point CDC only has experience with exposure to formaldehyde in the

work environment. They do not know what effect daily exposure to formaldehyde in the home

environment will have on individuals, especially children and women entering child-bearing age.

In an effort to disperse information, CDC held meetings across Louisiana andMississippi on the last few days of February through the first few days of March. I n the flyer

they distributed to encourage residents to attend, the CDC states the following: “FEMA will

also be at each of the sessions to provide information about the relocation of FEMA-supplied

trailer and mobile home residents to other housing.” Nonetheless, these FEMA

representatives refused to make a statement at the podium, and trailer residents remain

uncertain as to where they will house themselves once they are removed from their trailers, and

how they will be deal with the health problems caused by their occupation of these trailers.




PART III.

STORIES FEMA TRAILER PARK RESIDENTSRENAISSANCE VILLAGE TRAILER PARK

FE MA ’s Dirty Secret in Baker, Louisiana

Renaissance Village Trailer Park is the largest FEMA trailer park in the nation, and

sits in Baker, Louisiana, which is about 20 miles north of Baton Rouge and 100 miles northwest

of New Orleans. Renaissance Village received a great deal of press coverage and was

portrayed as “FEMA’s Dirty Secret”, mainly because the park once housed close to 3,000Katrina and Rita evacuees and the armed Blackwater Security guards hired to keep control

over the park refused to allow the press onto the property or to speak to residents.

Unlike smaller trailer parks, the residents of Renaissance Village have some access to

public transportation and have FEMA caseworkers available on site. In addition, residents

have received regular donations from numerous celebrities and nonprofit organizations.

Today, Renaissance

Village houses only about 300residents, most leaving as soon

as they find replacement

housing. Those left behind

are faced with increasing crime

per capita, less donations and

less options in terms of

alternative housing as open apartments in the area are already filled to capacity. In addition,

those left behind tend to be elderly, disabled, and others who find it more difficult to accessinformation and navigate FEMA’s intense bureaucracy.

In fall 2007, residents of Renaissance Village formed a coalition and in January 2008,

they presented a full housing transition plan to FEMA officials. Their plan includes the hiring




of caseworkers to assist residents in finding permanent housing. The coalition continues to try

to work with FEMA and other federal and state agency officials to push for a plan that allows

for all residents to achieve permanent housing before they are moved out of their trailers.

Stories from Rena issance Village T railer Park

Donald Meyers is a resident of Renaissance Village

Trailer Park. He is 56 years old and is a former painter who had

to give up painting when he suffered a head injury years ago.

Moreover, Mr. Myers is also badly in need of knee

replacements. In order to walk, he wears braces and the gravel

and grass in Renaissance Village become slippery and are

obstacles whenever it rains. When Mr. Myers was forced to

evacuate from New Orleans he left without his bottom dentures.

Now, two and a half years later he still has no bottom dentures.

Mr. Myers is married, but his wife evacuated to Houston and he has not seen her in over two

years. He also has a son and a grandson, who make him smile when ever he thinks about them.

Last he knew they were living under an overpass in New Orleans, but he is not sure where they

are now. While life is difficult in Renaissance Village for everyone, it is even worse for residentslike Mr. Myers, who are on disability and have no family to rely on for assistance. Mr. Myers

would like to move into a senior citizens’ facility, somewhere he could be in out of the rain and

walk around a little bit, a place where he can still have some privacy but get the help he needs to

live.

Prior to Katrina, Demetri Tendell rented an apartment in New Orleans and she was

employed as an assistant to a local contractor. When Katrina hit, Ms. Tendell stayed in her

apartment through the storm and even though her building was hit hard, she survived. Demetri

evacuated to the Superdome with her neighbor, and then moved on to Baton Rouge, where she

stayed with her daughter, son-in-law and her six grandchildren for a couple of weeks. She and

her daughter, also a storm survivor, secured an apartment in Baton Rouge, but Ms. Tendell

would soon move because there was insufficient space for the number of people living in the unit.




First, she moved to Winfield, Louisiana with her neighbor and his wife, and they stayed

in a shelter for months, waiting to hear from FEMA regarding their applications for trailers.

When Tendell’s neighbors’ application was granted, they allowed Ms. Tendell to move into the

trailer in Renaissance Village trailer park with them. This was supposed to be a temporary living

arrangement, however Ms. Tendell never received her own trailer despite her persistent efforts.

More than two years later, Ms. Tendell is now being denied rental assistance by FEMA. She

faces eviction from the trailer she currently lives in, along with her neighbor and his wife. Ms.

Tendell wants to rent an apartment on her own in Baker or Baton Rouge, however she cannot

afford the current rental prices.

Lydia Ball-Arthur feels like she had to come to Renaissance Village. She is college-educated and worked for the New Orleans Public Library for eight years prior to Hurricane

Katrina. Ms. Ball-Arthur had to evacuate to Houston and was on a waiting list for over one

year to get a FEMA trailer. Lydia found a job in Baton Rouge but she could not find

affordable housing. She moved in to her friend’s trailer in Renaissance Trailer park in early

2007.

According to Ball-Arthur, Renaissance Village is

toxic; the drugs, the environment, and it looked like it was going to go on forever before the recent formaldehyde

announcements. She began having bad sinus attacks

shortly after she moved into the trailer and went to the

doctor because she thought she might be allergic to the

grass around the trailers. When she heard about the

formaldehyde last summer in 2007, she realized that was

what was causing her sinus problems. She felt then like

every breath in the government-sanctioned shelter was adeath sentence, but worried her breathing problems would be blamed on her weight, or other

health problems and not seen for what it was; over-exposure to formaldehyde. Late last fall she

finally convinced a landlord nearby in Baker to let her move in to an apartment with her friend.




Despite her mounting debts, the loss of her savings pre-Katrina, and the long-term

health effects of the toxics she has been exposed to, Lydia knows she is one of the lucky ones

because she has a job and she could get out. During her interview she responded “This is a

tragedy of the working poor, the backbone of this country, the ones who pay taxes until they

die.”

Ms. Ball-Arthur is a leader of the coalition that residents of Renaissance Village

formed last year.

Before the storms and the failure of the levees, Thomas Garrett (age 58) worked as a

photographer and lived in New Orleans. He evacuated from New Orleans with thousands of

other evacuees in August 2005. After a month and a half at a shelter, FEMA told him to go

to Renaissance Village. FEMA assured him that he would not have to pay for anything for 18

months. FEMA said they would pay for electricity, propane, and that they would have a

kitchen to feed people so they would not have to worry about food. Mr. Garrett moved into a

trailer at Renaissance Village because of those assurances. A few months later, FEMA

denied telling residents any of that, and the promises were never fulfilled.

During his stay in the FEMA trailer, Mr. Garrett

developed a heart condition that makes it no longer possible for him to work. He has also developed breathing

and other problems that he believes are related to the high

levels of formaldehyde present in his trailer. Mr. Garrett

wants to move to St. Petersburg Florida to be close to

family and friends in his current state of bad health. He

also likely now qualifies for Section 8 or other public

housing assistance. However, FEMA has denied him

moving expenses, and due to FEMA and HUD

regulations, he cannot apply for public housing assistance

until he is no longer receiving FEMA assistance (i.e. until

he is out of his trailer).




Extremely frustrated with the FEMA red tape and bureaucracy, Mr. Garrett is one of

the leaders of the collation that residents in Renaissance Village formed last year.

Ernest Arceneaux lived in New Orleans 40 years before Katrina struck. Before the

storm, Mr. Arcenaux owned and operated a store for tourists with his brother. The last two

years have been very difficult for Mr. Arcenaux. He attempted suicide and spent some time in

the hospital. His trailer has been robbed three times. During his stay in the hospital the thieves

did more than just steal, they also vandalized the inside of his trailer. He was so upset with the

mess that instead of trying to clean things up when he returned, he just threw everything away.

His birth certificate was lost somewhere in the mess. Mr. Arcenaux says that if it were not for

his dog and his girlfriend, he probably would no longer be around.

Mr. Arcenaux does not have access to a phone and the FEMA officials let residents

make calls, reluctantly. He has been told by FEMA that they will not provide him with moving

expenses if he does not move more than 50 miles away. Mr. Arcenaux does not have a car and

does not have any way to move his things from the trailer to an apartment, even across town in

Baker.

SEPARATE AND NOT EQUAL

The Forgotten T railer Park for D isabled Residents in Port Allen, Louisiana

Thirteen mentally and disabled

residents sit in a small commercial trailer

park at the side of a very busy road in Port

Allen, Louisiana. They have been there

since early 2007, after FEMA moved

them to this commercial site from a much

larger trailer park in Baton Rouge. The

residents say they were taken to Port

Allen under the guise that resources would

be provided for them. Instead, unlike at the large trailer parks, such as Renaissance Village,

where there is public transportation provided, visits by food banks and other charity




organizations, onsite FEMA caseworkers, the disabled residents in Port Allen have been left

alone. Until recently, they had only infrequent visits by FEMA caseworkers and the local

office of the Council on Aging provided them with bingo nights and rides to the grocery store

once in awhile.

Some residents are in wheelchairs, others on oxygen, some are battling anxiety and

other mental disorders, and almost all are elderly. All of the residents find it difficult to take care

of themselves. The trauma of the Hurricanes of 2005 has caused their health to worsen, and all

of the residents report health problems they associate with the high levels of formaldehyde off-

gassing in their trailer, including respiratory problems, and difficulty sleeping.

The trailer park where these

residents live sits at the side Court Road in

Port Allen, and is bordered on both sides by

a “pit” of standing water. All but one of the

residents do not have a car and nearest

grocery store is 1-2 miles away. Many of the

residents used to walk or wheel themselves

along the road to the store. However, latelast year, a resident was struck and killed by a car as he wheeled himself along the road.

Residents now pay $40-50 for a tax to get to the grocery store. In addition, most of these

residents are receiving less than $40 per month in food stamps and all residents rely on their

SSI checks entirely for their needs.

These disabled residents had already been through a great deal before they arrived in

Port Allen. Many were rescued from rooftops, endured days without food and water, and they

were then placed in FEMA far from their families, friends, neighbors and other supportive

communities. The health problems of these residents also require regular doctors visits,

prescription refills and special medical equipment.

And yet, they have been left on the side of the road, largely alone and with little

resources for over a year. FEMA now has asked them to leave their trailers due to the health




risks associated with formaldehyde. Yet, these residents have no way of going in search of

alternate housing, most are on very low fixed incomes, and they need to stay in a location near

their doctor. These folks need assistance. They need food. They need someone to drive

them to their doctor’s appointments. They need good medical care. They need counseling and

a way to get in touch with their friends and family. They do not need to be left on the side of the

road and then told they need to leave with no place to go.

Stories from Port A llen, Louisiana

Byron Ragland is originally from the Lower 9th Ward in

New Orleans. He had just moved in with his partner before the

storm, but she disappeared during the storm and he has never found

her. He cannot face going back to New Orleans after what he has

been through, during the storm and in the trailer park since. Mr.

Ragland wants to get out of Louisiana and move to Jackson,

Mississippi. He wants the serenity to fix things in his life, with his

health, that cannot get taken care of while FEMA is putting him

through everything that he has been going through.

To date, FEMA has refused to assist Mr. Ragland with moving expenses and finding an apartment in Jackson thus far.

Gilberto Garcia is a Legal Permanent

Resident and has been living in the United States

for 28 years, since receiving asylum from Cuba. Mr.

Garcia was employed by the Cofco Factory in

Metairie, Louisiana until a workplace accident

severely injured and disabled his hand. He hasendured seven surgeries on this hand.

Since Katrina, Mr. Garcia has developed chronic asthma, and discovered that he now

has high blood pressure and heart disease. He receives $10 per month in food stamps and the

City of Port Allen’s food bank gives him one box of food every 30-45 days. Mr. Garcia is the




only resident in the trailer park with a car and gives the other residents a ride to the grocery when

he is able. Mr. Garcia wants to get on Section 8 and move back to Jefferson Parish, but he has

been told they are not accepting anyone else on the Section 8 waiting list. He does not want to

remain in Baton Rouge because all of his friends and family are in Jefferson Parish.

Lennon Wallace lived in the Bywater neighborhood of New Orleans before Katrina,

but he has been living away in trailers ever since. He is battling worsening mental health

problems and though he is fully functioning most days, his neighbors worry when he goes into his

trailer for weeks and refuses to come to the door. He wants out of the trailer as soon as

possible but has been unable to secure transportation to look for housing nearby.

At 66 years of age, Ernest Smith is one of

the older Port Allen trailer residents. He was

rescued from the rooftop of his house in New

Orleans East, but developed severe asthma and

bronchitis since (he was submerged in storm waters for

several days) and now has to be on oxygen 24 hours a

day. Since being relocated to the Port Allen park

one year ago, Mr. Smith has he has been to theemergency room four times and he believes the

formaldehyde in his trailer is worsening his breathing

problems to the point that his life is severely

threatened. He has been shifted from doctor to

doctor as he has been shifted from trailer to trailer

since the storm. He is worried that his current doctor

is not providing him with good care and that his complicated health problems need to be

addressed as soon as possible.

Mr. Smith was unable to apply to the Road Home Program in time and his insurance

company has been no help in providing him with funds to rebuild. He now has decided that even

though he has three children in New Orleans, he can never go back. About living in the trailer

park in Port Allen, Mr. Smith said “It’s like they said we’ll just put out there and leave you.” He




said that until recently, he had not seen anyone going out there to help the residents. Mr. Smith

would like to find an apartment nearby that he could pay for with his SSI check ($550 per

month). He has a local minister helping him look for an affordable apartment, but they have had

no luck so far.

ROAD TO NOWHERE

Tens of T housands of Hom eowners Still in Trailers

Generally, homeowners have fared better than renters Post-Katrina. The Road Home

Program was set up by the state of Louisiana to distribute rebuilding money and other

assistance to homeowners. Many homeowners also had insurance policies that should haveallowed them to collect for the damages to their homes. However, of the over 184,000

applicants to the Road Home Program, only about half have received funds so far. In addition,

insurance companies have been made infamous post-Katrina and a lawsuit over an unpaid

Katrina insurance claim reached the U.S. Supreme Court in February 2008. None of

surveyed trailer residents who are homeowners has been made whole, and most have not even

received enough money to rebuild. Of those that have received funds or loans, many have been

victims of contractor fraud and have lost their rebuilding funds forever. This has been especially

true for senior citizens. So many of the elderly turned their rebuilding funds over to contractorswho either did a poor job or took the money and ran. And, once the money is gone, there is little

to no recourse. There is usually no hope of tracking down the contractor, and less hope, even

with a judgment, of recovering money. The combination of these problems has left tens of

thousands of homeowners still in trailers in front of their gutted homes.

Stories from Homeowners Living in FE MA Trailers in New O rleans

Donald and Zella Roberts waited six months to move into their trailer after Katrina hit;

more than two years later, they still haven’t moved out. Mr. and Mrs. Roberts own a home in

New Orleans East and lived there Pre-Katrina with their daughter and six grandchildren.

After the storms and the failure of the levees, Mr. and Mrs. Roberts applied for a trailer, but

had to wait 6 months for it to be delivered. Payment of their insurance proceeds was delayed,

but as soon as they received same, they hired a contractor, who just as quickly stole $18,000.




In December 2006, the Roberts found another contractor, Curb Appeal Restoration,

LLC, which had completed two houses in their neighborhood. The work progressed well at

first, but later the Roberts uncovered signs of inferior quality, e.g., the ceilings were cracking,

water leaked in the house and, because the contractor had not followed the floor plans, there

were gaps in the house.

Mr. Roberts was consistent with his

examination of the work, but the contractor worked

less and less often. When the project completion

date passed without out the work being performed,

the Roberts could not refinance their home. Nowthe pay $300 more a month on their mortgage. Mrs.

Roberts has postponed retirement, despite the fact

she is in poor health. All totaled, the Roberts have

paid tens of thousands to a contractor who has refused the complete their home, but has

purchased new cars and a new home since signing their contract. Adding insult to injury, the

Roberts were just notified (along with 16 other mostly elderly residents) this contractor has filed

for bankruptcy protection, meaning it is highly unlikely these residents will ever be repaid or have

their home completed.

So the Roberts reside in a FEMA trailer, in front of their home, which they cannot

repair. FEMA is continually threatening to evict them from this temporary home.

Josie Jones is a dotting grandmother who lives in the Gentilly neighborhood of New

Orleans. She works full time at Walmart and has been living in a FEMA trailer since 2006.

She was lucky to receive her Road Home Program money in early summer 2007 and quickly

began looking for a good contractor to rebuild her home. She got 4-5 estimates from different

contractors, but she, too, has been defrauded. This will not save her from the continual threat

of eviction by FEMA, however. She pleads continually, “The stress of this life is killing me.”




PART IV.

CALL TO ACTION FOR FEMA TRAILER RESIDENTS

The government of the United States of America has failed the displaced peoples of

the Gulf Coast. These citizens were torn from their homes and lives by not only a natural

phenomenon, but also an inadequate and inappropriate government response. Rather than

strategically formulating a plan to aid residents rebuild and restore, the US government and the

state governments of the Gulf South repeatedly presented residents with programs and plans

which not only did not meet their needs, but in some cases exacerbated their problems.

From its very initiation, the distribution of FEMA trailers to displaced people in the

Gulf Coast has been a poorly designed plan. Each trailer costs an excessive amount,

consuming resources which could have better served the victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

Displaced residents were removed from the cities, neighborhoods and communities which they

knew and trapped in trailer parks without access to the resources and infrastructure which they

needed to rebuild their lives. Residents of the Renaissance Trailer Park frequently reported

that rather than giving their lives rebirth, their habitation of a trailer in the park has stolen all

opportunity because they did not have access to sufficient transportation to maintain a job anddid not have access to sufficient communication technology to maintain contact with government

assistance programs.

Now residents find themselves on the verge of eviction with no place to go. Those

individuals and families still occupying FEMA trailers do not have sufficient resources to finish

rebuilding their homes; they are unable to locate rental housing which they can afford. They are

stuck without the employment resources and access to transportation which would allow them to

begin to rebuild their lives. According to the Office of U.N. High Commissioner for Human

Rights, “Adequate housing is universally viewed as one of the most basic human needs.” What’s

more, the human right to affordability in housing is such that other basic needs are not

threatened or compromised. This right is being denied to the displaced residents of the Gulf




Coast. Although a crisis situation forced these citizens from their homes, the actions of the

US and state governments have kept these individuals from attaining their right to housing.

FEMA trailers, built for the US government, have been poisoning the residents

occupying these 32 square foot boxes for the past two and a half years. The United Nations

Declaration of Human Rights states that “Everyone has the right to a standard of living

adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing,

housing and medical care…” Additionally, according to the Guiding Principle on Internal

Displacement formulated by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Human

Affairs, “The authorities undertaking such displacement shall ensure, to the greatest

practicable extent, that proper accommodation is provided to the displaced persons, that suchdisplacements are effected in satisfactory conditions of safety, nutrition, health and hygiene,

and that members of the same family are not separated.” Quite to the contrary, the housing

provided to the internally displaced Gulf Coast residents has been seriously harming these

individuals.

The US government has an obligation to right the wrongs which it has committed

against its citizens. Not only did its poorly designed recovery plan trap many residents from

recovering, but the government’s lack of oversight actually poisoned its own population. We callon the US government and the governments of the Gulf South states to develop a plan to

restore within their citizens the opportunity to finally recover from the 2005 hurricanes and

regain healthy, fulfilling lives. A long-term plan must be formulated to make sure that citizens in

the Gulf Coast have access to safe, affordable housing, especially taking into account the

vulnerable populations, including the elderly and disabled, who continue to occupy FEMA

trailers. Additionally, all residents of FEMA trailers, past and present, need both immediate

and continued access to medical examinations and health care in order to gauge and address any

health problems resulting from their exposure to extremely high levels of formaldehyde. Not onlyis immediate assessment necessary, but the government must make sure that there is adequate

monitoring and medical follow-up.

To join the International Campaign for a Victims’ Fund for FEMA Trailer Residents,

contact [email protected], or call LJI at 504.872.9134.




ENDNOTES

1. “FEMA works to keep trailer parks temporary,” Paul Singer, National Journal, March 13,2006.

2. Electric and Gas Restoration Schedule, Entergy New Orleans Storm Center,www.entergy-neworleans.com/your_home/storm_center

3. “Extended Families Living Together May be Eligible for FEMA Disaster Assistance,”FEMA Press Release 1606-089, November 26, 2005.

4. “Toxic Trailers? Tests Reveal High Formaldehyde Levels in FEMA Trailers,”www.sierraclub.org/gulfcoast/downloads/formaldehyde_test.pdf

5. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Hearing on Dangers posed by

Toxic Trailers, July 19, 2007, http://oversight.house.gov/documents/ 200711114164004.pdf.

6. FEMA Statement on the Deployment and Sale of Temporary Housing Units, August1, 2007, www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=38329.

7. Trailer Deadline at End of Month, Jefferson Parish News Release, March 14, 2007,www.jeffparish.net/index.cfm?DOCID=5657.

8. FEMA Trailer Permit Extensions Granted, St. Tammany Parish Press Release,February 28, 2007, www.stpgov.org.

9. Kenner Deadline Approaches for FEMA Trailer Removal, City of Kenner PressRelease, www.kenner.la.us.

10. FEMA Quietly closing N.O. trailer sites, blog.nola.com/times-picayune/2007/11/ fema_quietly_closing_new_orlea.html.

11. FEMA Sets Date for Closing Katrina Trailer Camps, www.nytimes.com/2007/11/29/ us/29trailer.html.

12. CDC Releases Results of Formaldehyde Level Tests — TEMA to ExpediteRelocation of Residents From Temporary Housing Units, FEMA and CDC JointPress Release, February 14, 2008, www.cdc.gov/od/oc/media/pressrel/2008/

r080214b.htm.13. 2007 Student Hurricane Network FEMA Trailer Survey Project : During the week of March 12-16th, 2007, over 160 law students from 18 law schools interviewed residents from557 trailers in Orleans and Jefferson Parishes, as well as residents living in the RenaissanceTrailer Park outside of Baton Rouge. The information gathered suggested that the major problems facing residents was a lack of resources to repair their homes and a lack of




affordable housing options other than the trailer. Nearly half of the residents interviewedreported problems with their trailer, including leaks, mold, and roaches. Some residents reported

health problems related to their trailer. Although this survey project gathered valuableinformation concerning the situation facing FEMA trailer residents, the project did little to helpthese residents address their needs and move themselves into a more permanent living situation.Considering FEMA’s decision to close its trailer parks and the various parish codes outlawing the presence of trailers on residential streets, the Louisiana Justice Institute decided toundertake a project building upon the 2007 survey.14. www.road2la.org.15. Citizens’ Road Home Action Team, www.page.thinknola.com/wiki/show/citizens%

27+road+home+action+team.

16. Hearing of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Disaster RecoverySubcommittee on Shortfall and Slow Recovery Checks from Road Home administrators,http://landrieu.senate.gov/mlandrieu/releases/07/2007524E52.html.

17. “New Orleans Hurt by Acute Rental Shortage,” New York Times, Susan Saulny,December 3, 2007.

18. Larrance, Ryan, Michael Anastario, and Lynn Lawry; “Health Status Among InternallyDisplaced Persons in Louisiana and Mississippi Travel Trailer Parks,” Annals of

Emergency Medicine , Volume 49, Issue 5 (March 31, 2007).



1631 Elysian Fields AvenueNew Orleans, Louisiana 70117

t: 504.872.9134

f: 504.872.9878www.louisianajusticeinstitute.org

1452 North Broad StreetNew Orleans, Louisiana 70117

t: 504.309.2376

f: 504.309.2379www.childrensdefense.org

No Way To Treat Our People: FEMA Trailer Residents 30 Months after Katrina- Louisiana Justice...

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