I am pretty confused about this whole FEMA trailer thing

[Chemisse]

I was not a member of DU when Hurricane Katrina happened, so had nobody to ask.

Where on earth did these mobile homes come from, and why were they contaminated with formaldehyde? I know that manufacturers were required to inform customers that formaldehyde was used in the materials to build them, but I thought it was not at a level that was considered to be a hazard to the occupants.

Surely some trailer company did not build these and lace them with extra formaldehyde just for New Orleans. Where did they come from?

Are all mobile homes actually like this? If so, why do we only care about it when it comes to Katrina victims?

Were they extras that remained after being discontinued because they had too much formaldehyde? If so, what has become of all the people who bought ones like them before they were discontinued?

Does anybody know?

[panader0]

1. Besides the trailers with high levels of formaldehyde,

thousands of other trailers were stored in a huge field in some state such as Alabama. When the rains turned the field to mud, the trailers sunk, and their frames were warped and couldn't be moved. A huge FEMA faux pas. With our tax money of course.

[Chemisse]

2. What a mess - literally nt

[KT2000]

3. Good questions

there was a rush and some of the news stories say that the US manufacturers used subgrade paneling that had high formaldehyde.
People do get sick living in trailers and manufactured homes. They occur on a one at a time basis so they do not have the clout that a big group like the Katrina victims had, who also had the attention of their legislators and the nation.

When individuals are sickened by these products, they see their doctors, are usually told what to do for asthma (inhalers etc) and sent on their way. If it is bad, chronic illness ensues and it is up to the person to find a way to survive.

Legal cases brought for damages of this kind rarely see the courtroom. Before they have made it that far they have been diagnosed as having mental problems, have been prescribed psychotropic drugs and otherwise labeled as 1) opportunists 2) malingerers 3) suffering from PTSD from a possible childhood experience, divorce or whatever the dr finds out about the person.

Believe me, corporations have stacked the deck against anyone claiming harm from environmental exposures. That the 9/11 people are getting any kind of settlement is a huge milestone.

It should interest you to know that in congressional hearings about the trailers, one congressman stated that the formaldehyde levels found in the trailers was the same or less that the levels found in new home construction. If you ever wonder why so many people are sick with chronic illnesses, especially autoimmune ones, take a look at the toxic environment we are all living in.

[Chemisse]

6. Thanks.

I guess the quick manufacturing of the mobile homes could explain it. I thought the homes were already made at the time Katrina happened, but I may be remembering it wrong.

It doesn't make any sense for there to be an outcry about Katrina housing when there is no concern about the same housing (if that is the case) being used by average Americans all over the country.

By the way, I live in a mobile home that my husband and I bought about 6 years ago when our kids were moving out and we didn't need our huge, 4-bedroom house anymore. There was a little sign about formaldehyde in the display homes at the dealer's at the time, but he told us it was negligible.

The trailer is really nice, is a perfect size for us and the baby (our Mastiff), and we have suffered no respiratory problems here.

So that is why I am curious about this.

[Tippy]

4. Soe of these trailor which were condemed are finding their way to Mobil Home Parks

Sierra Club found 30 have shown up in St.Louis area... Here is a link that will help you fill in some gaps.

http://firedoglake.com/2008/01/30/fema-and-bush-administration-screw-the-poor/

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

5. The major issue was people using them as long term housing.

[Chemisse]

7. I found this one sentence

At publicintegrity.org, which may be at the root of what I have been wondering about:

Gulf Stream Coach Inc. won $500 million alone in FEMA contracts within days of the storm and quickly began work on 50,000 trailer homes using low quality engineered-wood products manufactured with formaldehyde, according to published reports.