North Carolina inmates pick up hammers to build homes for victims of Hurricane Floyd's floods
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Inmates build homes in North Carolina in an area that was hit hard last fall by floods resulting from Hurricane Floyd
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July 20, 2000
Web posted at: 11:31 p.m. EDT (0331 GMT)
From Brian Cabell
CNN Correspondent
TARBORO, North Carolina (CNN) -- At a non-typical construction site in eastern North Carolina, prison inmates are building 1,100-square-foot homes in an area that was ravaged by last year's floods spawned by Hurricane Floyd.
Thousands of homes were irreparably damaged by the flooding, creating a critical shortage of low-income housing.
The minimum-security inmates volunteered to become home builders.
"It's outside-of-the-box thinking," said Mark Munden of North Carolina Emergency Management. "I think it's a good example of how government can really help local citizens with limited tax dollars, or no tax dollars."
Experienced workers at $1 a day
Inmates such as Jonathan Harper, who's serving time for armed robbery, earn $1 a day. The pay won't make them rich, but it does give them a sense of satisfaction.
"Yeah, it does, it does. Makes you feel good," said Harper. "You know, get the house back on track and everything."
Most of the inmates from the Piedmont Correctional Institution had construction experience before their incarceration.
Ronald Bennett, who is serving time for driving while intoxicated, was a mason in the real world. He intends to return to masonry once he gets out of prison.
"I like building. You can always go back and see what you've done, and that's nice," said Bennett.
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CNN's Brian Cabell looks at a program that allows inmates to build inexpensive housing for flood victims
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Ronald Allen is also helping out with the project, but he may never see what he is helping to build because he's a convicted murderer, serving life.
Allen is in the Greene Correctional Institution, a medium security prison where no outside trips are allowed. Prisoners there work inside the walls building housing panels that will be used in construction of the new homes.
"I lay down at night, and I think about it -- how I'd like to see their faces, and their reactions and stuff," said Allen. "And just being a part of helping somebody, period, whether I'm in here or out there."
State wants dozens of homes built
The inmates have helped build 13 houses so far, and officials say the quality is superb.
Each house has an average cost of about $35,000, far below the market price. But the price is understandable, given that inmate laborers earn about a dime an hour for their work.
The prisoners are likely to stay busy in the months ahead. The state wants them to build at least 40 more homes for flood victims, perhaps many more.
There is definitely a need for the affordable homes, and the volunteer work force is willing to help fill that need.
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RELATED SITES:
Prison Education Services - 1998 Annual Report - Facility Highlights
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