SEATTLE AVENUE

FEMA attorneys, fearing lawsuits, quashed early attempts to test trailers for dangerous levels of formaldehyde. Now the agency faces class action suits and Congressional ire.

When Hurricane Rita turned most of their house into a pile of debris, 63-year-old Nancy Sonnier and her 64-year-old husband, Mitchell, salvaged three walls of a back bedroom and slept in their makeshift shelter for almost two months. They were relieved when FEMA delivered them a trailer right before Thanksgiving 2005, as the retired couple were determined to remain on their Vinton property and rebuild their home themselves.

They noticed a horrible smell when they first entered the trailer, so they opened the windows and doors for ventilation. The winter season was mild, and the Sonniers kept the trailer open most of the time. But when cold spells came and they had to close up the trailer and turn on the heat, the smell inside the trailer intensified. The couple’s sinuses became irritated and they coughed more than usual, but Nancy paid it little mind.

“I chalked it all up to stress,” she says.

When they needed a new mattress and FEMA sent representatives out with a replacement trailer mattress, the Sonniers mentioned the smell. “One of them laughed out loud and said, ‘We hear that from all kinds of people. Just open your doors and windows,’” she remembers.

To read the full article by Amanda Spake, go to The Independent Weekly.