Mary Badinger is legally blind, and can only distinguish shapes. She and her husband have been spending their days living in the garage of their St. Bernard Parish home of 30 years. Their house flooded during Hurricane Katrina and has been gutted.

WWL

Mary Badinger and her husband spend their days living in their garage while waiting for their FEMA trailer.

They spend their nights with relatives, and their days in the garage as they wait for their FEMA trailer.

Even Parish President Henry ‘Junior’ Rodriguez knew how badly they needed a place to live.

"My husband applied for a trailer in September, and everytime we talked to FEMA, it was a different story why the trailer couldn't come, and you never talk to the same person twice," Mary said.

It was three weeks ago that Junior Rodriguez called Eyewitness News for help with the Badingers, saying they had waited too long for their trailer.

Eyewitness News contacted FEMA, and gave them all the information. But when Rodriguez found out Monday that the Badingers still did not have their trailer, he took matters into his own hands. Rodriguez found a trailer that someone else had not used, and towed it to the Badinger’s house.

"I looked at Mrs. Mary, and said Mrs. Mary, you will have a trailer today. The little girl from FEMA, she looks at me and she says you know it is illegal, you can't do that. I said you don't seem to understand, legal has nothing to do with this. This is a blind lady with a dog and her husband's been living in a garage. I said I don't give a damn about the law right now."

Mary was delighted with her new trailer, and said she could not wait until it was hooked up so she could move in.  When Eyewitness News asked FEMA why they did not help sooner, the agency said up until recently they had ran out of the special trailers for people with disabilities.

"We as an agency, as a partnership, we have to do a better job of making this happen. There's really no good excuse for the timeline for this," said FEMA spokesman Wali Armstead.

"So Junior Rodriguez took it on himself to find me a trailer, and if it wouldn't be for Junior, I would not have a trailer, and I don't believe anything FEMA tells me any more. I've lost faith in FEMA," Mary said.

FEMA officials said they were investigating Junior Rodriguez’s actions.

"As it stands right now we're looking into his actions. My concern is this: I don't want the regular citizen to think it is okay to move their trailer. There's safety issues involved with that, there's legal issues involved with that," said Armstead.

"Tell them to investigate what ever in the hell they want. I welcome them, but if they don't have anything else to do, tell them to come help me haul trailers, and make themselves useful," Rodriguez responded.

If you need Action Reporter Bill Capo’s help with a problem, call the Action Line at 522-4404.