More than 250 Families Leave FEMA Housing Units
By: Jessica Brown
Updated: May 17, 2012
More than 250 families have left their modular units so far, and as more people trickle out it makes the people who still live here feel more uncomfortable, especially since their deadline to move out is early November.
As Susan Bragole takes her animals for a walk in her new neighborhood...she can't help but feel a little sad.
After losing her home in the storm. Bragole has been living in a FEMA modular unit in Joplin since August, and she says she is ready to move on.
Bragole says, "I never felt it to be home. To me a home is when I can walk out my backyard and sit on a deck and have my dogs running round."
She says it's been taking her longer to find a permanent home since she didn't have the right insurance on the last one she rented.
Bragole says, "We go through long term recovery...we got credit counselors."
And Bragole says the rental properties out there now are few and far between.
Bragole says, "The ones that are out there they are too expensive for our income."
Forcing her to wait in her modular unit for something stable...
She admits she does get scared when she sees others move out.
Bragole says, "I know there's a lot of empty trailers right now... a lot and im happy for them, but it also makes me sad because I'm still here."
Since the storm there were nearly 600 modular units in the FEMA housing unit area...Today nearly 1 year later there are only 321 that's almost half.
Bragole says, "You know I don't want to be the last trailer sitting out in the trailer park, but we're working on it."
Working on it by making contact with 3 rental properties a week ..required by FEMA.
Bragole says, "We have animals and a lot of people don't want them."
A frustrating cycle for Bragole, but she says but she's not giving up hope.
Bragole says, "There are days I just want to give up, be a miracle...but it'll happen."
Susan Bragole says she's hoping she can soon find a home to buy.
She says one of the hardest adjustments is not being able to have big family dinners with her 8 grandchildren.
