Healthy Rebuilding in New Orleans

NCHH, Enterprise, and Neighborhood Housing Services of New Orleans are carrying out a  demonstration project to provide critical information about the cost of and best  approaches for decontaminating homes that were damaged by flooding from  Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The project team selected three homes, owned by low- or moderate-income families, that experienced between two to six feet of  water above the first floor. NCHH is overseeing the health aspects of the program, including before-and-after environmental testing, worker protection issues, and documentation of the costs and procedures. A committee of healthy housing experts and scientists is providing advice regarding the demolition, decontamination, and worker protection approaches that the project team is using. The project team has created a "how-to" guide, Creating a Healthy Home - A Field Guide for Clean-up of Flooded Homes (see below) and a video for contractors, community-based housing organizations, homeowners, and tradespeople who are involved in the clean-up and rebuilding efforts.

Creating a Healthy Home - A Field Guide for Clean-up of Flooded Homes

INFORMATION FOR HOMEOWNERS AND WORKERS
Video - Mold Clean-up Guidance for New Orleans Area Residents Affected by Hurricane Katrina
Fact sheets
Steps for mold cleanup from flooded homes
Hurricane aftermath: ten tips to protect your family from housing-related health threats
American Red Cross Brochures

HEALTHY REBUILDING DEMONSTRATION
Protocol for mold cleanup
Sampling collection and analysis procedures
Results and conclusions
Case study of a home in the Gentilly Neighborhood of New Orleans
Healthy Rebuilding Workshop
Enterprise Gulf Coast Report
Healthy Rebuilding Presentation

OTHER RESOURCES
U.S. EPA Hurricane Response 2005 Test Results
Links to other information sources
Enterprise's Hurricane Relief and Recovery Efforts
Enterprise Gulf Coast Report

PRESS RELEASES
Mold Threatens Health Conditions in New Orleans - Orkin, Inc. Partners with National Center for Healthy Housing, Catholic Charities and ACORN to Battle Mold

Mold Clean-up Instructional Guide to Help Save Structures, Protect Health, and Speed Recovery

A Mold Protocol Modeled on Katrina