Toxic FEMA Trailer Claims May be Settled

(AP)  Lawyers for one of several trailer manufacturers accused of supplying the federal government with toxic hurricane shelters said Wednesday they were negotiating a settlement for thousands of claims.

A federal judge has postponed a New Orleans woman's trial against Fleetwood Enterprises Inc. so the talks could continue. The Riverside, Calif.-based company and its insurers are negotiating a settlement even though a jury in September rejected a New Orleans family's claim that a trailer built by another manufacturer exposed them to hazardous fumes.

Fleetwood sold around 10,500 trailers to a company that supplied them to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which gave Hurricane Katrina and Rita victims roughly 143,000 emergency housing units from several manufacturers.

More CBS coverage of FEMA Trailers:
FEMA Red Tape Keeps Families in Trailers
Katrina FEMA Trailer Turmoil

Fleetwood filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this year. Attorney Jerry Saporito said there have been "serious discussions," but neither side would comment on possible terms.

"I am satisfied that this effort to reach a resolution of all claims against Fleetwood ... is in the best interests of the plaintiffs," said Gerald Meunier, one of the lead plaintiffs' lawyers.

The plaintiff, Elisha Dubuclet, claimed elevated levels of formaldehyde in her family's FEMA trailer aggravated her daughter's eczema, a skin condition, and increased her cancer risks while they lived in the unit from June 2006 to September 2007.

Dubuclet's trial was scheduled to start Monday and would have been the second for a batch of consolidated lawsuits against FEMA trailer makers. U.S. District Judge Kurt Engelhardt didn't immediately set a new trial date.

In September, a jury found that a trailer built by Gulf Stream Coach Inc. was not "unreasonably dangerous."

Government tests on hundreds of trailers in Louisiana and Mississippi found formaldehyde levels that were, on average, about five times what people are exposed to in most modern homes. Formaldehyde, a chemical commonly found in construction materials, can cause breathing problems and is classified as a carcinogen.

Plaintiffs' attorneys accuse trailer makers of using shoddy materials and methods in a rush to meet FEMA's demand for temporary housing after the 2005 storms. Company lawyers have said many products, including travel trailers, emit safe levels of formaldehyde.

[bubbadubba]

It is critical that people who use the legal system to steal money get rewarded.
Where would we be without those wonderful trial lawyers?
The insurance company will simply pass on the costs to their policy holders so they don't care.
By the way, most attorneys are chicken and have no idea what to do in an actual trial which is why they settle.
The US has 6% of the world's people and 95% of the lawsuits and our Congress does NOTHING about it.

[sean56v]

Formadelhyde is a dangerous chemical. The trailer makers are guilty of using toxic material. Gulf Stream Coach hides behind George W. Bush and his Federal Judges. The American Public learned about their deceit and corruption.

[ianlou]

This maybe the last time we have the opportunity to say "ata-boy Browny!"

The Bush Jr. Legacy is still being writen.