Toxic Trailer Lawsuit Begins in Federal Court

By Eileen Fleming

New Orleans, La. – At issue is whether the Gulf Stream Coach company of Indiana provided FEMA with trailers that emitted dangerous levels of formaldehyde. Another defendant is the contractor that installed FEMA trailers. The presiding judge ruled last month that the two-year statute of limitations had expired for the government to be a defendant. That ruling is being appealed. This lawsuit was filed by a woman and her son, whose asthma allegedly got worse after living in one of the trailers. Government tests done in trailers in Louisiana and Mississippi found formaldehyde levels on average five times what are found in most modern homes. The trial is expected to last about two weeks.