What? Not another Celebrity Lawsuit?

The five-bedroom, five-bathroom estate of Rachel Ray in Southampton has mold.

In the New York State Supreme Court, Rachel Ray and husband have filed a lawsuit against Amerispec Heritage Home Inspection Service and Joseph Schmitt Consulting Engineers. Apparently the companies failed to inform them of mold on the property when they purchased the property. John Paulson paid $277,000 for the property in 1994, selling it in 2005 for $998,000.

The living quarters of Maumelle fire station tested positive for mold. Fire fighters have relocated. Municipal court employees have also been relocated from the mold-infested Municipal court building. Where will it strike next?

Samara Properties is now being sued after their tenant James Wilson died in October–after Samara Properties failed to respond to written and verbal complaints regarding leaks and mold in the Oklahoma property.

James Wilson’s coughing and upper respiratory problems are not an uncommon response to mold. Air quality tests revealed mold. On her doctor’s advice, Kimberly Wilson moved out of the home in December 2009. The windows and flooring of the $49,000 rental property are now being replaced.

Samara Properties (Najaya and Samir Khalil) own more than 200 properties in Oklahoma.

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.

The Philadelphia Housing Authority settled $9.5M on Ebony Gage, a 12 year old whose asthma and brain damage stemmed from hazardous, moldy conditions in the property managed by PHA.

PHA blames the Section 8 property owner and management company. After the property failed inspections, PHA gave the family 30 days notice, at which time Ebony had the Asthma attack. 2 Million will come from the landlord and management company.

Florida distinguishes itself because of its weather. You know you’re in Florida when, at any point of a sunny, delicious day, it starts raining…rains for a bit and stops, suddenly back to perfect sunshine again. Of course some days are deluges. This is all fine and good for Florida’s three climatic zones…

(which one could say is humid-hot, humid-hotter, humid-hottest), fine for Florida’s crop of verdurous flora, and even better for Florida’s unwanted crop of mold.

Because Florida may well lead the country in it’s mold crop (with Louisiana in close competition), it is no surprise that effective July 1, 2010, the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation will soon be responsible for licensing mold assessors and remediators.

Florida is going to regulate business organizations which hold themselves out for hire to the public as “certified mold assessor,” “registered mold assessor,” “licensed mold assessor,” “mold assessor,” “professional mold assessor, ” etc…

According to Florida 468.8411 part (6): -effective July 1, 2010, a mold remediator may not perform any work that requires a license under chapter 489 unless the mold remediator is also licensed under that chapter or complies with that chapter.

This legislation also provides that a mold assessor must have at least a 2-year degree in microbiology, engineering, architecture, industrial hygiene, occupational safety, or a related field of science from an accredited institution and a minimum of 1 year of documented field experience in conducting microbial sampling or investigations; or the equivalent with a minimum of 4 years of documented field experience in conducting microbial sampling or investigations.

Bringing the entire field under the umbrella of state licensure will clean shop. It is about time that states provide an official sanction for those with good moral character, a personal history of honesty, fairness, and respect for the rights of others and for the laws of this state and nation.

Florida’s mold legislation is here. Let’s hope the rest of the country will follow suit.

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.

The Chee family living in a Bucklands Beach (New Zealand) home for 9 years is suffering from the effects of leaks originating from an upstairs balcony leaking into the living room and spreading to the rest of the house.

The garage, living room and master bedroom areas have stachybotrys established. The mold known as stachybotrys, and other fungi produce toxic chemicals called mycotoxins. Individuals my inhale mold fragments, mycotoxins and spores, and react with allergic (or other) physical responses; the mold is linked to respiratory illnesses and infant deaths, but that is not a conclusive list by any means.

The New Zealand Weathertight Homes Tribunal awarded Joseph and Margaret Chee $141,800 for limited “target repairs.” The owner, Mr Chee had claimed $443,115.

The tribunal is set to rehear the case because of legal errors incurred.