FEMA Trailer - Trailer Culture

Trailer Culture

In general, most Katrina victims appreciate their trailers and commend FEMA for creating the trailer program. In Houston, 1200 of the 4600 trailers initially issued after Hurricane Rita required serious repairs by late 2006. So far, all FEMA trailers have been issued to storm victims without charge. FEMA trailers are manufactured from plastic, aluminum, and particle board. As such, they are somewhat flimsy and require more maintenance than a permanent structure. They are also poorly insulated, offer little sound insulation, and are known to sway in high winds.

Nevertheless, most FEMA trailer occupants had been living in their cars, tents, FEMA subsidized hotels, partially gutted homes, or sharing the crowded homes of relatives before receiving their trailers. As such, the relative personal privacy of a trailer is seen as a vast improvement. FEMA trailers are considered surprisingly spacious, although they have very little storage space for personal belongings.

Many trailer occupants consider their trailers actual homes, and have affectionately personalized their trailers with curtains, paintings, and houseplants. During the Christmas season, many FEMA trailers have been elaborately decorated with Christmas lights. FEMA trailers have been similarly decorated during Halloween, Easter, and other holidays. Trailers have also been decorated with political statements, sometimes praising and other times criticizing local government officials and FEMA itself.

FEMA trailer parks have developed into small communities. In New Orleans and other Gulf Coast cities, extended families often live near each other in the same neighborhoods, and several trailer parks are located near the same neighborhoods. As such, many members of the same family live in different trailers in the same parks. Neighbors frequently convene to have barbecues, crawfish boils, and parties for watching New Orleans Saints football.