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URGENT: DEATH OF AN APPLICANT

July 19, 2007 11:41 AM

It is Tuesday, June 27th, 2006 at 12:47:25 and Fema official Michelle McQueeney, sends the following e-mail MARKED URGENT to several colleagues at the agency:

Gil, Jim, Darryl:

A FEMA applicant was found dead in his trailer in St. Tammany earlier today.  We do not have autopsy results yet, but he had apparently told his neighbor in the past that he was afraid to use his A/C because he thought it would make the formaldehyde worse.  It may not have anything to do with formaldehyde, but I agree with Mark that we need to DEAL WITH THIS HEAD ON.

Misczak (Mark Misczak, another Fema official) says that OGC (office of general counsel) has NOT WANTED FEMA to test to determine if formaldehyde levels are in fact unsafe.  HQ Recovery (Souza and Garratt) are recommending that we mission assign EPA to do a full assessment and make recommendations.  I agree with this -- want to ensure that you're on board with this approach too.  Needs to be backed by Gulf Coast Recovery.

Regarding messaging -- WE NEED TO DEVELOP A STATEMENT FOR THE MEDIA -- would like Darryl (as soon as he arrives on site) to work with LA TRO public affairs and mark's team to develop a statement, and also EASY TO UNDERSTAND MESSAGING that can be IMMEDIATELY PROVIDED TO ALL RESIDENTS LIVING IN FEMA TRAILERS.   HUD provides a formaldehyde message to everyone living in a MH -- Mark's team has that language and it could be used as a model.  Our messaging would essentially be the same as what we used in previous press on this issue -- how to air out your trailer, use your A/C etc.

PLEASE ADVISE ASAP.  Gil -- I left you a voicemail on this too.  Darryl -- please come see me as soon as you get in.

thanks
Michelle

That e-mail from Michelle to Gil, Jim and Darryl was sent OVER A YEAR AGO.

YESTERDAY, JULY 18, 2007 at 3:09pm FEMA, aware they are about to get hammered at a Rep Henry Waxman hearing this morning at 10am, sends out a press release entitled "FEMA CONTINUES TO ADDRESS FORMALDEHYDE CONCERNS -- asks CDC TO CONDUCT ASSESSMENT OF INDOOR AIR QUALITY IN TRAVEL TRAILERS."

Lindsay Huckabee didn't wait for FEMA to test her trailer.  After numerous visits to a doctor and coming home one afternoon to find her young daughter "COVERING HER NOSE; HER HANDS, ARMS and SHIRT COVERED IN BLOOD" Huckabee got an independent test which showed a FORMALDEHYDE LEVEL of 0.18ppm -- "WELL above the 0.10ppm believed to be HARMFUL TO HUMANS."  In her prepared statement she says when she called fema about the test results, "WE WERE MET WITH OPPOSITION.  FEMA REPRESENTATIVES WERE RUDE WHEN I CALLED THEM."

Formaldehyde, a chemical which can be dangerous at elevated levels is widely used in building materials, often as a component of glue, adhesives, paint or coatings.   

July 19, 2007 in Congress | Permalink | User Comments (0)

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