Mold at Ashbrook High. Sounds like one of those 50s horror movies, right?

Ashbrook High is joining that list of schools that has been rushing to get mold cleaned up before classes begin. In fact, they may be working twice as hard as other schools. This is because they’ve had to clean up twice.

55 classrooms have been cleaned up after mold was discovered in the furniture; then it was discovered again after it had supposedly been eliminated.

When mold comes back, it is obvious that the circumstances favorable to mold growth have not been eliminated: water, humidity and spores are going to keep coming together and producing a mold crop until the circumstances are made unfavorable to mold growth.

The school is saying that the HVAC was at fault, due to the venting system not properly working. Vents that were supposed to be closed were actually open, and humidity accumulated, and of course the moisture damaged insulation and ceiling tiles, etc… but the school officials expect the problem will be gone by the time school opens.

assessment from Byebyemold.

Mold makes the Hollywood tabloids.This is how it happened:

We know that mold infestation in a residence can present a toxic environment, especially for immune-compromised individuals, infants and the elderly. This is indisputable. (The rest of the population being affected is something that is decided on a case by case basis since people’s responses vary. The main problem tends to be an allergic response, and allergies are very individualized.)

So Brittany Murphy and Simon Monjack died. Their house was known to have a persistent leak. In fact there was litigation going on involving leaky property and contractors. Leaks, as you know, are often related to mold, although family members deny the existence of mold in the house.

Pneumonia was involved in at least one of their deaths.

However, Los Angeles County Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter has come forward to deny that mold was not involved. The cause of Monjack’s death was ruled to be pneumonia.

In the Mendocino County Social Services Department building on South State Street, a leaky roof is causing mold in the carpet. Two days after an employee reported the mold, Cal/OSHA began looking into the problem–a problem which may be more serious than it appears at first because this mold is occurring after the problem was supposed to have already been fixed.

Cal/OSHA will be sending in inspectors to judge how hazardous the mold situation is.

If this is your situation too, and you’re in California, you might want to give us a call and see about getting an assessment from Byebyemold.

While mold has taken residence in (circa 1978) Fire Station No. 4 (Escondido), don’t look for the fireman there. They’ve taken up residence at the the Aegis Escondido Retirement development, at least for the duration of this year, as the city spends $300,000 removing mold from the firehouse.

Aegis is less than a mile from the fire station and is said to be the ideal temporary location, not only because of proximity to the old firehouse, but also because of the proximity to crucial high-need areas, and also the amenities.

Residents of the Telluride Apartment Mountain Village complex, a subsidized development, are suffering coughing, nasal stuffiness, eye irritation, rashes, wheezing and skin irritation due to mold exposure.

Over two dozen impoverished immigrants (including some undocumented) are now homeless due to their living conditions in the 20 year old complex on Adams Ranch Road in Mountain Village. The mold problem has been in the public eye since 2008. Recently on-site managers complained to inspectors that they were fired for not bleaching the mold “to hide it from inspectors. ”

(This could be questionable, because bleach DOES kill superficial mold, though it is not a solution for invasive mold.)

The Red Clay Theatre has been caked in mold since the September 2009 flood. A portion of the building will be razed. The Deluth Historical Society regrets the decision, but mold in the 1908 era structure made the decision inevitable. However a 28,000 grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency will be funding a new roof and flooring. And the demo allows an unobstructed view from the highway of retail shops older than the Red Clay Theatre which were previously blocked.

A case in New York over a property in foreclosure will force lenders to maintain properties affected by mold. In 1997, an earlier case ruled a foreclosing bank responsible for property maintenance during a foreclosure. There is apparently quite a problem in New York City, with the abysmal condition of numerous buildings leading to a city task force threatening to go to (foreclosed) building by building in New York.

Ten properties formerly owned by Milbank Real Estate and now being foreclosed by Wells Fargo are in a responsibility gray zone, neither owned by Wells Fargo nor Milbank, and the tenants living therein are dealing with situations like rampant mold, falling ceilings, no heat, and no hot water.

If this is your situation too, and you’re in California, you might want to give us a call and see about getting an assessment from Byebyemold.

The non-profit Washington DC General Family Shelter is about to experience some changes.

In February, Councilmember Tommy Wells toured the facility and saw mold and ceiling damage in the stairwells and heard complaints about plumbing problems, and concerns over cleanliness.

It’s either going to close, or possibly be under new management. Current management allowed an assortment of allegations and mismanagement, including mold. In a June assessment, either the mold and peeling paint were not there, or the Department of Human Services missed them in their assessment. The current management company will most likely be ousted.

Mold can have devastating health effects and surely could have been a factor in the deaths of the two infants there in the past two years. (Infants are particularly susceptible to severe reactions to mold.)

If this is your situation too, and you’re in California, you might want to give us a call and see about getting an assessment from Byebyemold.

After hearing from government whistleblowers (employees complaining of illness and unhealthy working conditions,) the FAA is attempting to clean up the Detroit Metropolitan Airport to rescue it from its current mold infestation by replacing the roof, putting in new drywall and installing new ceiling tiles and carpet. The US Office of Special Counsel is handling.

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The honeymoon is really over when you come home to your dream home that is making you sick. Which is what happened to Danielle Beety who refers to her experience as like an episode of HOUSE. Her mystery illness was a 5-centimeter abscess in her neck (surgically removed) and fever that returned every time she and her newlywed husband returned to their new home.

The environmental engineer who did air and wipe testing in their leaky basement and found elevated levels of mold and gram-negative bacteria – resistant superbugs that cause respiratory and other ailments. Doctors and the environmental engineer told them to grab their dog and move out.

So they did.

Foreclosure on their house will begin soon, but they’re leaving everything behind. The builder denies that the house caused the illness. Internationally known microbiologist Chin S. Yang links the housing boom and environmental-health issues. He believes that rapid building to keep up with the housing boom resulted in less than high quality buildings suffering with sick building syndrome. Toxic bacteria and mold are a trigger of health problems. For some of these toxic homes, demolition is the only solution.

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