Shelters
Permanent Housing
Housing Offers
Housing Offers on Other Sites
Other Assistance

Note: You do not have to be a member of the Green Party to make housing offers or to use any part of this site. Everyone is welcome.

Shelters:

This information was published Sept 2nd and may have changed. "Louisiana government officials advise that in addition to the existing special needs shelters that have opened in Alexandria and Monroe, shelters have been opened in two other communities in Louisiana. These shelters are staffed by the Department of Health and Hospitals and Department of Social Services. While these shelters are open it is strongly encouraged that citizens first try to evacuate to the north with their families and get out of harms way. These are shelters of last resort and are not for the general public. At 10:00 am this morning, an additional shelter was opened in Lafayette. At this time, special needs shelters have been opened in Alexandria, Monroe, Lafayette, and Baton Rouge. Due to the uncertainty of the damage that Baton Rouge and Lafayette will sustain from the storm, DHH officials stress that it is very important to move to a shelter further north in Alexandria or Monroe if at all possible. Special Needs Shelters are designed for individuals who are homebound, chronically ill or who have disabilities and are in need of medical or nursing care, and have no other place to receive care. Those seeking shelter will be screened by nurses to determine the level of care needed. Only people who meet admission criteria can be sheltered. If their condition is too critical, they will be referred to a hospital for sheltering, or admission. If their condition is not severe enough for Special Needs Sheltering, they will be referred to a general shelter.

"Special triage telephone lines are being established in each region to accept the calls of citizens seeking special needs sheltering. Citizens with special needs seeking shelter must call telephone number in their area BEFORE attempting to access a shelter. These numbers are listed below.
Alexandria: 800-841-5778
Shreveport: 800-841-5776
Baton Rouge: 800-349-1372
Monroe: 866-280-7287
Houma/Thibodaux: 800-228-9409
Slidell/Hammond: 866-280-7724
Lafayette: 800-901-3210
Lake Charles: 866-280-2711

" Because of limited staffing, those going to a Special Needs Shelter must have a caretaker to assist with ongoing support and they should bring all necessary supplies including sheets, blankets and pillows. Community And Residential Services Association (CARSA), a trade organization for providers of services with developmental disabilities, in cooperation with the ARC of Louisiana, the Developmental Disabilities Council and The Advocacy Center, is available to assist families who may have relatives who were evacuated from community homes and other service programs in the Greater New Orleans area. Families seeking information may call the following numbers for assistance:
CARSA 225-343-8811
The ARC of Louisiana 1-866-966-6261
Developmental Disabilities Council 1-800-450-8108
The Advocacy Center (Baton Rouge) 1-800-711-1696
The Advocacy Center (Lafayette) 1-800-822-0210."

Permanent Housing:

HUD Establishes Single Toll-Free Number (1-888-297-8685) To Help Disaster Victims With All Housing Concerns

Housing Offers:

I have EI and I own a duplex in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Right now one of the units is open. It has been repainted with traditional paint within the last year but other than that it is very clean chemically. It is a two-bedroom/i bath unit with wood floors. Heat and stove are gas. No pesticides, herbicides, smoking or commercial cleaners used since we've owned (years now). New Mexico is a nice dry and relatively clean place. It is in the city of Albuquerque so normal city air (cars and such) does apply. Washer dryer in unit. Laundrymat is a block away. To reach the owner of this property, contact the webmaster.

We have an efficiency apt, suitable for one person that is available. We've "cleared it" for the chemically sensitive. Would rent for $300 a month to good references. Also have three bedroom home, that will be free December 1st or a little earlier till April first. Would rent for $1500 a month (utilities included). Again with good references. I have CFS, and made very attempt to make both living spaces healthy for the chemically sensitive. We live in Greensboro, NC. If anyone is interested, have them email me, mwilliams6@triad.rr.com. We have several good holistic MD's in area for continued care. God Bless, Sara Williams.

Housing for 6 or so people in Petaluma, CA. For people with multiple chemical sensitivity (environmental illness) only. Room for RV plus second camper or small RV. Electricity and water available. Dump station 1 mile away. Or park car here and have bathroom/kitchen privileges. Some indoor space may be available but we'd want to meet you first and make sure our sensitivities are compatible. Children welcome. Pets possible (lots of cats on property). Semi-rural area near organic farm. 1/2 mile from bus stop; 2 miles from downtown. San Francisco 2 hours by bus or 1 hour by car. Air quality good but not pristine. Absolutely no smoking, fabric softener, pesticides on property. House has some natural gas, cats, and baby. No fragrances. Area has dust and mild mold (20 miles from coast). A couple steps to house, inside is one level. Outdoors unpaved with slight slope. (707) 775-4475 (10am-9pm Pacific Time except in emergencies) or cyndi@tikvah.com.

I can provide temporary shelter for someone w/MCS displaced by Katrina. I'm in Western Mass. Very fragrance free, great outdoor air quality, can be somewhat moldy outside if we have a lot of rain but I usually keep it in good check inside. I have dogs and extreme allergy to cats. So, can't take a cat, but would take a single woman or woman w/small child or woman w/dog for short-term accommodations. I use a lot of electronic equip (TV, computer, etc.) so not a good space for someone w/severe EMF. SWachsler@aol.com and put "MCS shelter" or something like that in the subject line. If the person doesn't have access to a computer, they can call me at 413-625-9820.

We can take a few people or a small family with MCS or other disabilities such as autism. We live our lives fragrance and chemical free, and we have a family sized heavenly heat sauna. We homeschool our five children. We ask that there be no smokers, and to stay with us, one must be willing to live chemical free. Also, no drugs, only very occasional alcohol. We are a family who loves cooking all kinds of foods, from healthy to down home, to gourmet. We would require a background check on both ends, some relief agencies provide this. The offer is for staying up to a year or until you get on your feet. We can offer couches, sleeping bags, and a room that is unfinished (sheetrock and mudded but not painted, and concrete floors.) We can finish the room with tolerated materials, or leave it as is. We could move things around and double up with bedrooms for some of our children, if needed. Children and pets welcome. We have three cats and a dog. We live in a suburb way outside of Kansas City, where there is really nice air, and a short commute to a lot of jobs. We may be able to offer employment opportunities to someone who would like to get into high end electronics, home theater business, high aptitude with electronics a must. A ride to work would even be provided. This would be an opportunity for a fantastic career for someone. We have a lot of computers and TV's, and video games in the house and we do have teen friends and friends of our children who come in and out, and we ask that they not wear cologne, but we do "bear with" their mild detergent smells and have a social life. We are a large family of eight, who live in a seven bedroom home in a residential neighborhood. Shelly Axe (913) 856-2306 or email at badaboom@kc.rr.com.

By the way, if there should be anyone in our area (Columbus OH) we'd be willing to try to help. I'm not sure what we'd be limited to due to our lease but we have at least one not-especially-comfortable extra bed, even if only for the short-term. Scent-free chemical-free home, some mold (not bad but not suitable for someone with mold sensitivity), central heat & air, gas heat & stove, near the highway. 3 young, noisy, sleep-disrupting children included. ;) Other child/ren welcome. House is autism-proof. thebyks@wideopenwest.com

Housing Offers on Other Sites:

MoveOn.Org Hurricane Housing - Many thousands of offers all around the US, open to all Katrina survivors. Hard to search, especially if you are not looking near to one of the areas they designate. There is a box for "handicapped accessible" but that could mean anything and few people indicate if their housing is accessible or how. A few links to alternative donation sites.

Katrina Disaster Relief Information for People with Disabilities and people who want to help them - Run by a CIL in Michigan. Well-detailed housing offers for people with disabilities, divided by geographic area. Also has disability-specific information.

Other Assistance:

We are working with the Environmental Health Network to provide supplies for Katrina survivors with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. If you have scent-free/chemical-free supplies to donate, let us know. We could use your financial support as well to cover the costs of purchasing and mailing supplies. Even a dollar or two is useful because it adds up. Currently mailing checks is the only way to send money to EHN, but hopefully they'll get PayPal or some other internet account up soon. Please send checks directly to: EHN, P.O. Box 1155, Larkspur, CA 94977-1155. Be sure to state this is for Katrina.

The owner of Nirvana Safe Haven has kindly offered to provide nontoxic products to Katrina survivors with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (or asthma, allergies) at a substantial discount (her cost and overhead). Air and water filters, organic bedding, and nontoxic construction supplies. http://www.nontoxic.com/ or (800) 968-9355.

Please write cyndi@tikvah.com if you can add to these lists. Housing for people with disabilities, scent-free clothing, adaptive equipment, extra air/water filters, offers of transportation or financial assistance, etc are all very welcome. We would also like to know about disabled-accessible shelters and official contacts for people with specific disabilities (though much of that is at http://katrinadisability.info/).