FEMA vs. Airstream - Juan Pablo Uribe

Movement - Giles Hall

MOBILITY

IMMOBILITY

FEMA Trailer 3D Render - Juan Pablo Uribe

Compared to the Airstream's curved, single shell aluminum structure, the Springdale trailer is made up of a simple boxy structure clad with cheap aluminum siding.

Airstream Exploded Axonometric - Juan Pablo Uribe

Airstream International 3D Render - Juan Pablo Uribe

Airstream Wall Detail - Felix Cheong

Note the precision that needs to be involved in the construction and the quality materials.

Airstream Classic Limited, Section, 31' - Caelin Schneider

Airstream Classic Limited, Plan, 31' - Caelin Schneider

Airstream Camp Pari (Central Focused Organization) - Felix Cheong

FEMA Camp Parti (Imprisonment) - Polly Auyeung

Typical FEMA Trailer Elevations (Springdale 242FWRLSSR 2010) - Megan Baker

FEMA Camp Site Plan - Iggy So

Airstream Parti (Freedom) - Iggy So

parti - freedom

FEMA Trailer Wall Detail - Felix Cheong

FEMA Trailer Plan - Polly Auyeung

FEMA Trailer Site Immobility - Giles Hall

FEMA Camp Parti (Grid Organization) - Polly Auyeung

Illustrated Evolution of Airstream Design - Milda Miskinyte

1930's

1940's

1950's

1960's

1970's

1980's

1990's

2000's

Airstream Simplified Site Plan - Iggy So

Airstream Elevations and Sections - Iggy So

A Comparison of Postcards - Andreea Toca

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Media References

1. Cafepress. "Camp Fema". Cafepress.com. 2009

http://images2.cafepress.com/product/109675032v1_480x480_Front.jpg (Accessed January 20, 2010)

2. Gtykal. "Airstream Postcard 3." Flickr. December 3, 2008.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30848961@N04/3079663368/in/set-72157610674668116/ (Accessed January 20, 2010)

FEMA Trailer Detail - Felix Cheong

The following link goes to the patent application of a FEMA trailer construction method for the wall and how it connects.

Information Sources
Haub, Gregory et. al. "TRAILER, WALL CONSTRUCTION AND MANUFACTURING METHOD". Free Patents Online. 2008.
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/20090260305.pdf (Accessed January 13, 2010)

Airstream Park Site Plan - Iggy So

Media References:
Piehl, David. "Park Map". Minnesota Airstream Park. 2009
http://www.airstreampark.com/park_map.htm (Accessed January 12, 2010)

Simplified New Orleans Maps - Milda Miskinyte

Note that the poorest residents in New Orleans lived at the lowest elevations, which became flooded due to Hurricane Katrina.

Keynote Materials - Andreea Toca

These are just some extra things I am putting in the keynote, and i know we have to cite everything

August 26, 2005

The governor of Louisiana declares a state of emergency.

Federal troops were deployed to Louisiana to meet with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to coordinate aftermath operations.

August 27, 2005

Mandatory evacuations were ordered in low-lying areas of Louisiana, as well as some voluntary evacuations.

At 5 PM, the mayor of New Orleans announced a state of emergency and voluntary evacuation.

Mandatory evacuation for New Orleans would be delayed until 30 hours before Katrina was expected to make landfall. This gave residents in low-lying areas a head start on evacuation.

Tolls on highways were suspended to speed up evacuation.

Many residents in low-lying areas were too poor to afford leaving town.

August 28, 2005

The Superdome is opened as a “last resort” for New Orleans residents.

August 29, 2005

Hurricane Katrina hits the state of Louisana at 205 km/h.

At this point, Hurricane Katrina is a Category 3 hurricane.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

Media References

1. Greenmannower. "Hurricane Katrina New Orleans." Flickr. August 23, 2006

http://www.flickr.com/photos/911review/222607703/ (Accessed January 18, 2010)

2. NASA. "Hurricane Season 2005: Katrina". NASA. October 13, 2005.

http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/lookingatearth/h2005_katrina.html (Accessed January 18, 2010)

3. ibid

4. ibid

5. ibid

Information Sources

1. "Timeline of Hurricane Katrina". Wikipedia. 2010

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_Hurricane_Katrina (Accessed January 18, 2010)

FEMA and Airstream Camps over Time - Polly Auyeung

While Airstream gatherings set up and leave within a week, many Katrina camps still exist despite their original deadline of 18 months. Airstream camps are in blue, FEMA's are in red.

2005-2007

A month by month timeline can be downloaded here

A FEMA Camp Timeline - Polly Auyeung

The article sourced outlines the timeline of the Renaissance Village FEMA Camp from its creation in Sept. 2005 to March 2008, when the article was researched.

Key dates to be noted:
Sept. 2005: construction begins
Oct. 2005: the camp finally opens, almost two months after the hurricane
Dec. 2005: the fire department declares it will no longer service the site
Feb. 2006: FEMA starts charging for propane
April 2006: federal contractor stops delivering meals; it is also the official deadline for closing the camp
Aug. 2007: almost 500 trailers still remain occupied
Feb. 2008: high levels of formaldehyde are found in some trailers
Mar. 2008: trailer park occupancy drops below 200 for the first time

Information Sources
1. Barrow, Bill. "FEMA to close Renaissance Village trailer site May 31". The Times-Picayune. April 8, 2008.
http://blog.nola.com/news_impact/2008/04/RENAISSANCETL040908.pdf (Accessed January 18, 2010)

Tracking Airstream Rallies - Polly Auyeung

Airstream Rallies generally occur for 3-7 days and involve at least 30 people. Usually regional clubs organize trips to natural landmarks or cultural festivals but sometimes rallies occur at campgrounds so Airstream enthusiasts can socialize and share their travel stories. I went on the Airstream Forums and noted all the rallies within two years of Hurricane Katrina. Listed below are their locations

2005
jan - cedar keys
june - moraine view state park
october - kingman, az; longs, sc
nov - pyramid lake, nev
dec - lake ray roberts state park, texas; bianco state park; pasadena, ca

2006
jan - san dimas, ça; indio,ca; oceanside, ca; temecula, ca; lodi ca; cedar key, florida; saltine city, ca
feb - mckinney falls state park, tx; blythe, ca; riverside city,ca; avon park, fl; sarasota, fl; cottonwood, az; newport, or
mar- freedom, new hamp; hoboken, ga; tombstone territories rv park; reno, nv
april- for lauderdale; mt. vernon, wa; st. augustine, fl; amish country, pen; wentachee, wash; san diego; chatsworth ga; belleville tx; myrtle beach, sc.; dos picos county park; parvenu state park; west alexander pa; riverhead ny; salisbury, ma; duncan mills, ca; smith, nv; salem, ore; durand mi
may- chatham ny; limestone, pa; port aransas, tx; lovelock, nv; lake sampson, va; gettysburg; hancock, nh; tumalo sp,
june- lake george ny; limestone pa; north norwich ny; pasco wa; moraine view; seaville nj; scusset beach; truckee ca; montage nj; salem, or
july- silver falls, ore; trout lake we; vail lake, ca; burlington, vt; mammoth lakes, ca; georgetown, main; estes park, co
aug- grass lake michi; brooks, ore; galax va; rockies; strasburg pa; rochester nh; marblefalls, tx; par buena, nj; dayton pa; bellingham, washington; hats creek,ca; angel fire, nm; upper saranac lk, ny
sept - lebanon pa; edinburg va; yucaipa park ca; block island, rhode; pecatonica river forest; east wakefield, nh; silver springs, nv; land between the lakes, kentucky
oct- newport dunes, ca; townshend, vermont; woodland, ca; gray, tn; new hope, pa; coloma state park, ca; palmetto cove, sc; san marcos, tx; columbus, ohio; silver springs, nv; lake san antonio, ca
nov-oxford mi
dec- baraboo, wisc; pasedena, ca

2007
jan-topsail, fl; santa paula, ca
feb- montgomery, tx; cottonwood, az; old town, fl; sarasota fl; newport or; manteca, ca; freedom, nh
mar- washoe lake, nevada; four corners
april- sonora, ca; washington, ca; lincoln city, oregon; lake chatuge, georgia; silver springs, nev; pensacola
may- bloomsburg; frankfort ky; hatcreek ca; council bluffs, iowa; birch run, mi; north situate, ri; wallowa lake oregon; columbus, indiana; painsville, ky; kanab color country; susanville; thousand islands, ny
jun- nyc; moraine view; lovelock, nev; poplar grove, il; perry, ga; fletcher, oh; jordanelle state park; lizardhead pass; perry, georgia
july- fountain green utah; mammoth lakes; wellington, oh; durand mich; pyramid lake
sept- meteor crater; dayton, washington; block island; gilbert lake state park, ny; freeport, maine; port republic, nj; ione, nv; beverly beach state park
october- albuquerque; gonzales louisiana; pecatonica forest preserve; brandon montana; doyle california; shenandoah; valley virginia; lake san antonio; north ga mountains, ga
november- kernville ca; san antonio nm; show low, ariz; kernville,
december- westford, ma; blanco, tx; picacho peak state park

Information Sources:

1. Social Knowledge. "Upcoming Rallies". Airstream Forums. 2010.
http://www.airforums.com/?page=rally (Accessed January 13, 2010)

Timeline of FEMA's Relief Effort - Polly Auyeung

August 29, 2005
Hurricane Katrina hits Southeast Louisiana. Thousands of residents are displaced from their homes. Temporary emergency centres are set up in stadiums, community centres, churches, and anywhere that isn't destroyed.

Sept 12, 2005
FEMA's director, Michael Brown, resigns.

October 2005
Many of the first FEMA trailer camps open to respond to more than 700 000 emergency housing applications. However there were too few facilities, and overcrowding occured in many camps.

December 2006
Camps are at their 18 month closing deadline. However more than half of the trailer residents are still there. FEMA slowly begins removing utilities and facilities.

February 2008
With many residents still in the park almost three years after the storm, investigators find high levels of formaldehyde in the trailers.

Information Sources
1. Barrow, Bill. "FEMA to close Renaissance Village trailer site May 31". The Times-Picayune. April 8, 2008.
http://www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2008/04/fema_to_close_renaissance_vill.html (Accessed January 18, 2010)

Drawing Assignments

This is what I have recorded for the drawings, though I know some people have made changes on their own:

Plan, section, elevation of Airstream – caelin

Axo of Airstream

Plan, section, elevation of Springdale – Megan

Axo of Springdale

Plan of Airstream camp - Iggy

Plan of FEMA camp - Andreea

Connection detail for Airstream (an idea for a detail drawing)

Morphology airstream map – Polly

Morphology of trailor - Giles

Morphology of community – Felix and Aiden

Plan showing nothing to full to nothing FEMA camp - JP

Section showing development in infrastructure for FEMA

Series of sketches depicting cultural history – milda

Cultural history notated

The Overall Idea? - Polly Auyeung

For a piece of architecture that is designed with an ideal in mind, there will always be people who find an alternative function for it. The trailer and especially the Airstream was originally designed to prompt americans to explore, "to place the great wide world at [their] doorsteps". But FEMA officials noticed the economical side of the design. Trailers modified to their bare minimums could be produced quickly and cheaply, transported easily, and packed tightly to make emergency camps.

Without the choice of "movement", the trailer, originally a permanently temporary shelter (forever travelling) has become a temporarily permanent structure. Instead of inspiring freedom it evokes desolation. Instead of fostering strong communities bonded by their love of travel, trailer camps produce social isolation.

Airstream Construction Details - Felix Cheong

The following PDF outlines construction details of an Airstream. One of the aspects that make Airstream such an icon is its construction. The construction and specification of the Airstream trailer is what makes it unique since everything right down to the last bolt is custom for the use of Airstreams. The construction is very clean with connections that promote the form and mobility of the trailer. Its materials are also unique such as using aircraft aluminum for the outer shell. This is part of what makes the Airstream such a trademark. This PDF has almost everything from furniture construction, to chassis details, to rivets, bolts and handles that are used inside the airstream. If anyone needs to reference for details, structural axos, or plans and elevations you can probably find it here.

Information Sources:
Airstream. "2002 International Travel Trailer." Airstream. 2002
http://www.airstream.com/docs/2002%20Parts%20Books/2002%20International%20Trailer%20Parts%20Linked.pdf (Accessed January 13, 2010)

Formaldehyde problem in FEMA trailers - Milda Miskinyte

The levels of formaldehyde are so high in FEMA trailers that even employees aren't allowed to enter for long periods of time.

Information Sources:
Project Katrina. "FEMA's Formaldehyde Trailer Emails Exposed." Youtube. 2007

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4lTNVlld-k (Accessed January 12, 2010)

New Orleans Maps - Milda Miskinyte

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[3]

Media References:
1. Greater New Orleans Data Center. "Percent of people living below twice the poverty threshold." Greater New Orleans Data Center. February 3, 2004.

http://www.gnocdc.org/mapping/docs/Poverty.pdf (Accessed January 12, 2010)
2. Greater New Orleans Data Center. "New Orleans elevation by neighbourhood with major roads" Greater New Orleans Data Center. August 30, 2005.

http://gnocdc.s3.amazonaws.com/maps/PDFs/neworleans_elevation.pdf (Accessed January 12, 2010)

3. Jen Laloup. "New Orleans Flood Depth." PLOS One Community Blog. August 26, 2009.
http://everyone.plos.org/2009/08/26/worthathousandwords-6/ (Accessed January 12, 2010)