Black Toxic Mold – Mold Remediation News in the Media

Health Concerns Breed Suits Over Mold
December 31, 2002
By AARON FAUST, Courant Staff Writer

ENFIELD — Stephen Champagne says the mold in his rented Elm Street home has sent him to the hospital twice and is responsible for the headaches, fatigue, memory loss and respiratory ailments he has suffered since he moved in a year and a half ago. His son, who lives with his mother, is no longer allowed to go inside the house, he said, because 4-year-old Stefan’s neck balloons to the size of a football and his nose bleeds. MORE

Mold problem being addressed
Dec. 30, 2002

The Horry County Schools system is spending about $300,000 to deal with a mold problem at Myrtle Beach Primary School. School staff first identified mold on the walls of some classrooms earlier this year. The district hired environmental testers, who in November found water-stained ceiling tiles, dust buildup and low levels of mold in the school. MORE

Mold issue spreads concern
Growth hinders couple’s ideal of a warm, fuzzy home in Cedarburg
By DAN BENSON
Dec. 28, 2002

Cedarburg – Winter is a time for woolly boots, not “extremely fuzzy” boots, like the mold-covered pair in the basement of the remodeled home of Cynthia Collins-Hansen and her husband, Lowell Hansen. The boots stand as a damp testament to a Hansen family ordeal that began three years ago and has resulted in them being forced out of their mold-infested Cambridge Ave. home last February. Moldy carpet, moldy walls, moldy furniture. MORE

Girl’s Homecoming Delayed: Her House Could Kill Her
Mold Has Taken Over Family’s Corona Home
December 27, 2002

ORANGE, Calif. — The homecoming for hospitalized leukemia patient Camarae Casillas is being delayed because her house could kill her. MORE

Mold makes her sick, teacher says
Los Banos district to retest portables, clean ductwork.
By Mike Conway
The Modesto Bee
Published Tuesday, December 24, 2002, 5:54 AM

LOS BANOS — A second-grade teacher says her classroom is infected with mold that makes her sick. Cathy Cox avoids using the heater because it stirs up the spores and even tried wearing a surgical mask to see if that would help cut down the problems in her portable classroom. MORE

NAII Says 35 States Have Adopted ISO Mold Limitations
December 24, 2002

Thirty-five states have adopted an approved Insurance Services Office (ISO) mold limitation for homeowners coverage, which allows insurers to exclude coverage for loss caused by mold and wet or dry rot, unless the conditions result from a covered peril. According to the National Association of Independent Insurers (NAII), a separate limit for mold damage resulting from a covered peril may be added by endorsement. MORE

State Farm passes on mold
BY CARA BUCKLEY

One-fifth of Florida’s condo associations faces rate hikes of 132 percent and will no longer have mold coverage, marking the latest chapter in insurers’ efforts to head off an explosion in mold-related claims. MORE

Leaks, mold strike Doral apartments
Peter Zalewski

Tenants in at least 60 percent of the 384 rental units at the 3-year-old Jefferson at Doral luxury apartment complex in Miami-Dade County have been asked to leave so the landlord can fix water leaks and isolated cases of mildew. MORE

Appeals court knocks down $32 million judgement in toxic mold case
JIM VERTUNO
Associated Press

AUSTIN – In a high-profile case involving a mold-damaged home, a state appeals court on Thursday reduced a jury verdict against Farmers Insurance Group from $32 million to $4 million plus interest and attorneys fees. MORE

Insurer, Fla. break ground over mold
Homeowners to get ‘broad-based coverage,’ state says
BY DALE K. DuPONT

The Florida Department of Insurance and Florida Farm Bureau Insurance Cos. reached agreement Tuesday on mold coverage, one of the prickliest issues facing homeowners and insurers. While both sides stress that this is only one case involving one company, it appears to be the first detailed guideline on this issue in Florida. MORE

Mold closes Loudon hotel
Owner, builders, designers working on problem
By REBECCA FERRAR
December 18, 2002

One of the key issues forcing closure of the Holiday Inn Express in Loudon County is a mysterious mold in the rooms, the construction contractor and state health inspectors have confirmed. MORE Battle against mold By JENNIFER HICKS Norwich Bulletin It lurks in shower stalls, basements, other damp areas, and can cause serious health problems. It’s mold, an organic fungus that’s been around for billions of years. It’s also the cause of many health problems in humans, as well as structural damage in homes and buildings. MORE

New Home Found For Shelter Plagued By Mold
$1.5 Million Project To Be Completed Within 20 Months
POSTED: 6:02 p.m. EST December 16, 2002

CLEVELAND — Officials said that mold has been attacking the county’s shelter for homeless women and children, creating a dangerous environment. News Channel 5’s Joe Pagonakis reported that the city of Cleveland teamed up with Cuyahoga County on Monday to announce a badly needed solution: that a new location for the shelter has finally been found. MORE

Mold Is Becoming A Significant Real Estate Matter
by Stuart Lieberman

Who ever heard of a home not selling because of mold? Or of a “mold contingency?” Five years ago, no one ever heard of such a thing. But mold is getting more attention and home inspectors need to look for mold on a regular basis, if they are not doing so already. Most of us laugh at the idea of mold entering into a real estate transaction. But here is the problem: mold litigation is on the rise. More and more lawyers are handling cases relating to mold exposure. And some judgments have been awarded in these cases, suggesting that they may have legal punch. MORE

$557,000 home must be torn down because of mold
Associated Press
Published Dec. 12, 2002

WHITEFISH BAY, Wis. — In May, Brian and Kaare Lotz bought a $557,000 home, a perfect fit, they thought, for their growing family. It had a small yard and needed few repairs before the family moved in. But it also had a hidden problem – mold. Now, the family can’t live in the house, sell it or have it insured. MORE

Area officials tackling mold concerns
Ashley Rowland
Sun staff writer

The black slime under your sink is becoming your insurance agent’s biggest nightmare. Across the country, insurance companies and health officials say they’ve watched complaints about mold – a fungus that can cause health problems ranging from stuffy noses to asthma – surge during the past year. MORE

No Sold If There’s Mold
by Blanche Evans

You’ve heard of Radon, asbestos and lead paint. Now meet the newest official pollutant – mold. Mold is a biological pollutant, a fungi that grows in moist conditions. Molds are found in up to 50 percent of all structures, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA.) And it could kill your next real estate deal. MORE

Whose Mold Is It Anyway?
by Stuart Lieberman

You live in an apartment and it has a lot of mold. Good news? Bad news? News at all? The answer is all three. It’s good news if you are a mold hobbiest. What an opportunity. And if you can harvest the penicillin, so much the better. It’s bad news if you are one of the many people who react poorly to mold. Some of us just sneeze. Others can become pretty ill. MORE

Beware:Toxic Mold Is the fungus in your floorboards making you sick?
With no clear answers, panic and lawsuits abound
By ANITA HAMILTON
Sunday, Jun. 24, 2001

Sharyn Iler, 52, of the Woodlands, Texas, an upscale suburb of Houston, couldn’t figure out what was wrong. Every time she went into her bathroom to put on makeup, her eyes started burning. She felt constantly exhausted, her vision was blurry and she had a dry cough that just wouldn’t quit. Diagnosed with breast cancer in 1998, Iler feared the worst. Perhaps after two years of remission, the disease had returned. She never imagined that the source of her troubles might lie buried within the walls of her $300,000 home–or that she and her husband Bruce would be forced to flee for health reasons with nothing but their dog and cat in tow. MORE

Ed McMahon Sues Groups Over Toxic Mold
Associated Press

The lawsuit seeks damages for alleged breach of contract, negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress due to mold exposure. McMahon and his wife Pamela, said a plumbing pipe burst in July, flooding their den with water. Mold was found in the den a month later, the lawsuit says. The couple alleges the mold spread to other parts of the house, including the air conditioning ducts. They claim they became seriously ill and their dog died from toxic mold related illness. MORE