Before the volunteers go out on-site to gut homes, they must get all their safety wear and equipment for the day. There are a lot of precautions volunteers must take so their health is not affected by the mold and other toxins in the flooded homes. (There have been over 300 different kinds of mold found in the homes affected by Hurricane Katrina.)

We had to wear:

• a new tyvek suit every day
• two pairs of work gloves
• heavy boots
• respirators with clean filters

A tyvek suit is a jumpsuit made of strong synthetic fabric that's disposable and protective. (It keeps the mold off your clothes.) We would leave them at the work site at the end of the day.

Everything that was reusable was cleaned with bleach water for the next day.