FEMA = Scumbags - Update on trailer camp life

Dolemite · Apr 24, 2006

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<h2>FEMA's Dirty Little Secret: A Rare Look Inside the Renaissance Village Trailer Park, Home to Over 2,000 Hurricane Katrina Evacuees</h2>
Monday, April 24th, 2006

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/04/24/1346217

During Democracy Now's recent trip to New Orleans, we managed to get inside the largest FEMA trailer park set up after Hurricane Katrina. Shortly after we interviewed hurricane evacuee Donna Azeez, we were kicked out of the park by security guards working for Corporate Security Solutions, the private company hired by FEMA to police Renaissance Village. [includes rush transcript]
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Earlier this month, Democracy Now went down to Louisiana and had a chance to take a rare look inside Renaissance Village - a trailer park on the outskirts of Baton Rouge that houses over 2,000 Hurricane Katrina evacuees. The trailer park has been described in the Louisiana press as "Fema's Dirty Little Secret" in part because of FEMA's tight control over who has access to the park.
Prior to being kicked out of the trailer park by private security guards, we managed to speak to Donna Azeez who lives at the trailer park.
<ul>
<li>Donna Azeez, resident of Renaissance Village.</li></ul>

<hr>
<a name="transcript">RUSH TRANSCRIPT</a>
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AMY GOODMAN: We are going to continue now to look at New Orleans and the problems facing citizens who are displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Earlier this month, Democracy Now! went down to Louisiana. We had a chance to take a rare look inside Renaissance Village, a trailer park on the outskirts of Baton Rouge that houses more than -- close to 2,000 Katrina evacuees. The trailer park has been described in Louisiana press as “FEMA's dirty little secret,” in part because of FEMA's tight control over who has access to the park. Prior to being kicked out of the trailer park by the private security guards in charge, we managed to speak Donna Azeez, who lives at the trailer park.

<ul>DONNA AZEEZ: Couple of my things got flooded. My car got flooded. My refrigerator was gone. And I had a shed in the back with my washing machine, my dryer and a lot of other stuff. All that got destroyed.

AMY GOODMAN: So, how did you end up here?

DONNA AZEEZ: Well, my brother -- it was like 13 of us in a van, and we all came in my brother's van, and he brought us up here.

AMY GOODMAN: So, did you end up first at the shelter and then here?

DONNA AZEEZ: Yes.

AMY GOODMAN: And what's the trailer park like?

DONNA AZEEZ: It’s horrible. It smells bad out here. You smell the sewer. It’s horrible living out here. You’ve got to deal with all the bugs, caterpillars coming all up on the porch, going up in your house. And some of the trailers, like the trailer I’m living in right now, is very small. And it’s hard to keep clean. It’s me and my baby in there. And it’s very hard to keep it up. And it’s a lot of wear and tear on your mind.

AMY GOODMAN: Where do you get your food?

DONNA AZEEZ: Oh, well, I buy my food. We had a cafeteria over here, but they just closed it April the 6th.

AMY GOODMAN: Why?

DONNA AZEEZ: They say enough people wasn't going to eat it, but the food was horrible. Only had a couple of things that taste good: the fish and the chicken. Everything else was like slop.

AMY GOODMAN: So, where do you get the money to buy the food?

DONNA AZEEZ: Well, I get food stamps. But everything here is so high. You just got to really be wise in spending it, because the cost of living is very expensive.

AMY GOODMAN: And what about propane?

DONNA AZEEZ: Oh, I have to buy my own propane.

AMY GOODMAN: Did you always have to buy it?

DONNA AZEEZ: No. FEMA was supplying it. And they told everybody you have to -- you could stay here -- and propane, I believe, for 18 months, and then now we have to start paying for it.

AMY GOODMAN: Have you been here for 18 months?

DONNA AZEEZ: No. But there’s a program going on now. They’re trying to really get you out. We just been here maybe about six months. But they said 18 months. But they’re not agreeing to what they said.

AMY GOODMAN: Can you go back?

DONNA AZEEZ: Home? I could go back home, but I think it just might be -- I would rather stay here in Baker, but I think it’s just even worse over there, because everything has jumped up -- the rent, everything. Everything is very, very high. Higher, probably higher than here in Baker.

AMY GOODMAN: Could you go back into your house?

DONNA AZEEZ: My house, I could go back, but I’m really sure my landlord probably have tripled, ‘cause it didn't get flooded. A lot of houses on my block -- what saved my house was that it was up high, up on steps. That's the only thing that saved it. But mostly everybody else, their houses were destroyed.

AMY GOODMAN: So, you could go back into your house?

DONNA AZEEZ: I could go back, but I couldn't afford it. The rent is too high. I couldn't afford it.

AMY GOODMAN: But how do you know that the landlord increased the rent?

DONNA AZEEZ: Well, because it’s everywhere. You know, everywhere you go, the rent has increased. Everything has increased. And then I heard that the government was going to help you out, but that’s just for a certain period of time. And then after that, you’re on your own. So, even if I stay here, I have to find a house that I can afford, because they’re only going to give you a certain amount of money to help you for a while, and then if you can't afford that high rent, well, then you’re out the door.

AMY GOODMAN: Are there rules here that you have to --?

DONNA AZEEZ: Yeah. We have the FEMA park rules. We have a lot of rules that they set up.

AMY GOODMAN: Like what?

DONNA AZEEZ: Well, for one, like there’s no decoration. And I think that's just so wrong, because you’re living here and you want to be comfortable where you’re staying and you want to feel good. They won't let us put any decorations outside. All we could do is put decorations on the inside. And I’m trying to think of some more stuff. It’s a long list of rules and regulations.

AMY GOODMAN: Can you go out and in when you want?

DONNA AZEEZ: To the best of my knowledge, yes. I didn't hear them say anything about that.

AMY GOODMAN: And how old is your baby?

DONNA AZEEZ: She's five.

AMY GOODMAN: Does she go to some kindergarten?

DONNA AZEEZ: Yes. She goes to Baker Heights.

AMY GOODMAN: And how long do you plan to stay?

DONNA AZEEZ: Well, I plan on staying. I don't want to go back to New Orleans.

AMY GOODMAN: Why?

DONNA AZEEZ: Because I don’t think they’re going to fix that levee. I don't think it’d be able to withstand. And then hurricane season is coming again. I just don't trust it.

AMY GOODMAN: Do you have a phone that you can communicate here?

DONNA AZEEZ: Yes. I have a cell phone.

AMY GOODMAN: How did they give it to you?

DONNA AZEEZ: FEMA -- you have to go and apply. And then it’s like after -- they give you free 300 minutes, and then after that, then you have to pay for it.

AMY GOODMAN: And do you have a landline inside your trailer for a land phone?

DONNA AZEEZ: No. And that's the thing. We don't have cable. You can’t have cable, you can’t have a regular telephone. There’s nothing to do out here. That's why children are getting in trouble. There's nothing to do. They’re trying to get some programs started, but it’s kind of -- they’ve got some going on, but it’s not enough. </ul>

AMY GOODMAN: That was Donna Azeez, speaking to us in Renaissance Village in Baker, Louisiana. As we traveled around, the security guards told us that we had to leave. These were security guards from C.S.S. of Grand Rapids, Michigan, hired by FEMA. That's Corporate Security Solutions. These were guards, a number of whom had been in Afghanistan and Iraq. The residents, though, of Renaissance Village, seemed surprised that they weren't allowed to speak in their own community, and one man asked if he could talk to us. And this is what happened.

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE RESIDENT: Deception. Lies. A famine. A shortage.

AMY GOODMAN: Wait, don’t stop.

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE RESIDENT: Everything. And it ain't no good to be here.

SECURITY GUARD: Turn it off.

AMY GOODMAN: We were going in the car, and he said, "Please interview me."

SECURITY GUARD: Yeah, he -- he can't. That’s not his privilege.

AMY GOODMAN: He’s not allowed to talk?

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE RESIDENT: What's wrong? What's wrong?

SECURITY GUARD: You can go -- get that -- you’ve known the deal since --

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE RESIDENT: No, I don't know the deal. Tell me. What is the deal?

SECURITY GUARD: You can go get interviewed as long as it’s off post. Otherwise, you, like I said, I can call the 800 FEMA number and have them come in --

AMY GOODMAN: You mean, he has to come off of the property?

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE RESIDENT: What is -- there’s a problem being interviewed?

SECURITY GUARD: Turn it off.

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE RESIDENT: Turn it off, man. I don't want no problems.

AMY GOODMAN: Okay.

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE RESIDENT: ’Cause I don't know anything about not being able to be interviewed.

SECURITY GUARD: You -- no, you can be interviewed, as long as it’s off the installation.

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE RESIDENT: Well, okay, we can move over there.

SECURITY GUARD: Other than that that [inaudible].

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE RESIDENT: Okay, we can move over there. ‘Cause I was sitting out here reading my Bible. But I didn't know anything about -- we will not being interviewed, because --

SECURITY GUARD: Yes, you can be interviewed --

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE RESIDENT: Okay.

SECURITY GUARD: -- if they had a FEMA representative with them, but since they don’t and do not have an appointment --

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE RESIDENT: Oh, okay. ‘Cause I know they do it all the time.

SECURITY GUARD: Yes, they have the FEMA public relations officer with them.

RENAISSANCE VILLAGE RESIDENT: Okay, well, I didn't know.

SECURITY GUARD: I’m not mad at you, Red. You know that.

AMY GOODMAN: As we drove off of Renaissance Village, we were chased by the guards in golf carts, who said they would be taking down our license plate and that we couldn't return. This was the day after FEMA had ended the free meals that they had been providing to the more than thousand people, anyone who wanted to take advantage of it in Renaissance Village, again, about an hour away from New Orleans in Baker, Louisiana.
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GET YOU HOT · Apr 24, 2006

Sad Commentary. Hopefully, the new mayor will get the ball rolling.

GET YOU HOT · Apr 24, 2006

Sad Commentary. I hear the FAA is just as bad.

GET YOU HOT · Oct 12, 2006

Unused FEMA trailers at six flags New Orleans, La

[WM]http://websrvr20.audiovideoweb.com/avwebdswebsrvr2143/news_video/425512K.mov[/WM]

African Herbsman · Oct 12, 2006

FEMA concentration camps. Coming soon to a town near you.

Greed · Oct 12, 2006

any date on those concentration camps?

i know we couldnt get one for the draft or world war 3, but i thought maybe you'd go out on a limb and commit to a date this time.

African Herbsman · Oct 12, 2006

You look it up, the truth is out there.

Greed · Oct 12, 2006

convenient.

African Herbsman · Oct 12, 2006

Who is Halliburton building detention centers for?

Greed · Oct 12, 2006

does the date they start rounding up people depend on that and that's why you can state one?

African Herbsman · Oct 12, 2006

No, I'm just interested in who you think these centers are being built for. I don't have a date. In all honesty, I hope that I'm wrong. I don't want to believe that we are living in a country that rapidly becoming openly fascist. I don't want to believe that our govt would attack its own citizens to start a war. I don't want to believe that they would knowingly let black men die from syphillis. The list goes on and on. I don't want to believe any of it but research leads me to the same conclusions. Who knows, maybe Halliburton is getting all of that money to construct vacation resorts or something. I wouldn't count on it though.

Greed · Oct 12, 2006

if you don't have a date then how long do you wait before you admit you were wrong?

have you given up on thinking a draft is coming? been a few years since that one came out.

what about world war 3?

anyway, i don't know who they're being built for because these aren't my theories.

i just get entertained on how open-ended all these dire predictions are all the time.

Makkonnen · Jan 29, 2008

Surprise! FEMA Lied About The Danger of Katrina Victim Trailers

Probe: FEMA sugarcoated danger of hurricane trailers

* Story Highlights
* FEMA says it "did not suppress or inappropriately influence any report"
* Democrats on congressional panel say FEMA "ignored, hid and manipulated" data
* FEMA tests indicated trailers were safe if properly ventilated
* Probe: Expert said not divulging research constituted "threat to public health"

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Federal Emergency Management Agency manipulated scientific research to play down the danger posed by formaldehyde in trailers issued to hurricane victims, according to an investigation by congressional Democrats.

FEMA "ignored, hid and manipulated government research on the potential impact of long-term exposure to formaldehyde" on Katrina and Rita victims now living in FEMA trailers, said a letter written by Democrats on Monday.

Democrats on a House Science and Technology subcommittee wrote the letter to Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. FEMA is part of the Homeland Security Department.

In a separate letter, lawmakers said the federal health agency that provided guidance to FEMA was "complicit in giving FEMA precisely what they wanted."

Victims living in FEMA trailers have complained of health problems related to formaldehyde, but initial FEMA tests revealed the air quality in the trailers was safe if those trailers were properly ventilated.

Formaldehyde is a common preservative found in building materials used in manufactured homes. It can cause respiratory problems and has been classified as a carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer and as a probable carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

FEMA said the health agency's February 1, 2007, advice didn't address long-term health effects, but rather concerned ways to avoid toxic exposure to formaldehyde.

"FEMA did not suppress or inappropriately influence any report," said agency spokesman James McIntyre.

The lawmakers are questioning the integrity of research done by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, and said they don't trust FEMA to conduct an independent investigation into the toxicity of the formaldehyde in trailers.

The investigation, led by Rep. Brad Miller, D-North Carolina, found the health agency ignored research from one of its own experts, Christopher De Rosa.

Because the health opinion was completed without appropriate oversight, the results could be misleading, De Rosa wrote in a February 27, 2007, letter to a FEMA attorney that was obtained by the subcommittee.

"Any level of exposure to formaldehyde may pose a cancer risk, regardless of duration," De Rosa wrote. "Failure to communicate this issue is possibly misleading and a threat to public health."

In its initial round of testing, FEMA took samples from unoccupied trailers that had been aired out for days and compared them with federal standards for short-term exposure, according to the lawmakers. FEMA officials instructed scientists at the health agency to leave out details about long-term exposure in its consultation.

"Honest scientific studies don't start with the conclusion, and then work backwards from there," Miller said in a statement.

FEMA is currently testing 500 of the 40,000 trailers, but the lawmakers said they have no confidence in the new testing and sampling procedures.

The test results are expected in February and FEMA plans to issue a final report in May.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

VegasGuy · Jan 29, 2008

Re: Surprise! FEMA Lied About The Danger of Katrina Victim Trailers

Just goes from bad to worse don't it.

-VG

Makkonnen · Jan 29, 2008

Re: Surprise! FEMA Lied About The Danger of Katrina Victim Trailers

its like OH your momma died in the street yesterday? oh you're shittin in a bucket on national tv? oh ok we'll holla at you tomorrow

hey there sorry we took so long but condi was on vacation and George had a birthday party to go to but were here so everything is cool

a month or 5 later

hey we got you a nice trailer! dont worry about going home we're tearing down your homes!

naw man that smell is like that new car smell man

youre sick? man you should see the doctor and get a flu shot or something

formaldehyde? hey man i aint no scientist ill get back to you on that

see here? it says you will be OKAY!

b0010100 · Jan 29, 2008

Re: Surprise! FEMA Lied About The Danger of Katrina Victim Trailers

VegasGuy said:
Just goes from bad to worse don't it.

-VG

Co-Sign!

World B Free · Jan 29, 2008

Re: Surprise! FEMA Lied About The Danger of Katrina Victim Trailers

THE DEVIL

nyyyyce · Jan 29, 2008

Re: Surprise! FEMA Lied About The Danger of Katrina Victim Trailers

this s*** is too embarrassing to be depressing any more...

GET YOU HOT · Jan 30, 2008

Re: Surprise! FEMA Lied About The Danger of Katrina Victim Trailers

Why all the hype...?

>The trailers didn't even get to New Orleans...

QueEx · May 3, 2009

Re: Surprise! FEMA Lied About The Danger of Katrina Victim Trailers

<center>FEMA housing program for
Gulf Coast residents ends
IT’S MAY 1 and FEMA’S DONE</center>

Biloxi Sun Herald
By ANITA LEE - calee@sunherald.com
Apr. 30, 2009

LYMAN — Brenda Steele cries as she explains what she will do if FEMA takes the mobile home her husband and children moved into in July 2006, four months before her husband died.

“They start to get it,” she said, “they’re going to have me and the kids in it. They’ll pull it down the road with me and the kids in it.”

Steele, who lives in Harrison County, said FEMA has just informed her she can buy the trailer for $7,500, but she doesn’t have that kind of money. Her 44-year-old husband suffered multiple health problems, and so do her two children.

She once worked 16-hour shifts, but feels she can no longer afford a job. Her children would lose their Medicaid, she said. One of her daughter’s prescriptions is $600 a month.

Steele is one of 1,910 Mississippians for whom FEMA assistance ends today after an agency record of 44 months.

“We know it’s a difficult time for families affected by Hurricane Katrina,” said FEMA spokesman Eugene Brezany. “We’re doing everything we can to move them into permanent housing solutions.”

The Mississippi Case Management Consortium of nonprofits, funded by FEMA, is working with residents to find permanent housing.

In many cases mobile home residents are purchasing their units. Those in travel trailers do not have that option. FEMA decided against selling the trailers because of formaldehyde complaints and high formaldehyde levels in some.

One woman in Stone County called the Sun Herald saying she was angry she could not buy her trailer from FEMA even though she’d found another FEMA trailer for sale on a commercial lot. The General Services Administration, which was auctioning trailers as scrap, said FEMA has suspended all sales for that reason.

Nonprofit workers said Thursday some residents have simply been unwilling to accept that FEMA assistance would end.

“It’s a hard pill for many people to swallow, even now,” said Stephanie Mathis of International Relief and Development in Gulfport.

Also, many have multiple issues that are difficult to resolve.

“We have people coming in every day who are concerned about the deadline,” Mathis said, “and it’s mostly people who have challenges that are difficult to solve.”

Brenda Steele is one of those people. In addition to her family’s health problems, her mobile home is on a piece of land to which she does not have clear title. She said her husband inherited the property from his mother, but the deed had not been transferred to his name.

She is uncertain what she will do, other than wait to see if FEMA comes for the three-bedroom mobile home, packed with donated furniture and curio cabinets brimming with glass angels. Her husband’s ashes sit in a box among them.

Steele said they tore down their damaged mobile home, a mid-’50s model, because they were told they could keep the one FEMA brought. She doesn’t understand why the agency wants to haul away the mobile home.

Today, FEMA said, the agency will start moving out the mobile homes and trailers that have been vacated.

“For those who remain in their units on May 1,” the agency said in response to a Sun Herald e-mail, “FEMA will hand-deliver Notices to Vacate informing those who remain that they must surrender the housing unit or FEMA will ask the U.S. Department of Justice to pursue legal action to gain possession of the housing unit.”

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/251/story/67319.html

QueEx · Aug 14, 2010

Re: Surprise! FEMA Lied About The Danger of Katrina Victim Trailers

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Remembering%2BHurricane%2BKatrina%2BNew%2BOrleans%2BNOLA%2BFleur%2BDe%2BLis%2BGraphic.jpg

</center>

]

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FEMA = Scumbags - Update on trailer camp life

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