FEMA Trailers Pose Threat To Kids' Health

BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. (AP) - Doctors fear tens of thousands of
children who lived in FEMA trailers after Hurricane Katrina could
have lifelong health problems.
The trailers -- up to 143,000 of them -- may have formaldehyde
fumes up to five times the safe level. Formaldehyde is classified
as a probable cancer-causing agent, and kids are believed to be at
particular risk.
One young mother, whose 15-month-old daughter was born while the
woman was living in a trailer, says her little girl has persistent
breathing problems. She says she never would have stayed so long in
the trailer if she'd known the risk.
The formaldehyde was detected in the trailers when they were
sent to the Gulf Coast in 2006. But there was no push to get people
out of them until this February.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)