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Wareham building condemned
By Aaron Nicodemus
Standard-Times Staff Writer
January 8, 2003
WAREHAM -- Town officials checking up on complaints of toxic mold in the Depot
Crossing low-income housing condemned one building yesterday and might be close
to condemning several others.
While officials from the health and building departments found extensive mold in
all eight apartment buildings owned by South Shore Housing, Building Inspector
Theodore Misiaszek condemned one building because chronic flooding in the
basement had caused serious structural problems, including rot and cracks in the
timbers that support the building.
The four families living in Building E at Depot Crossing, located on Minot
Avenue in East Wareham, were ordered to leave the building last night and are
staying in local motels or with family. They will be out of their apartments for
at least two weeks, and perhaps much longer.
"We went to all the other buildings and they all have serious problems," Board
of Health Chairman Ralph Thompson said at a hearing on the issue last night. "We
are glad that the one building has been evacuated, but something needs to be
addressed real quick, because there are still other people living in the other
apartments."
Kevin Walsh, an attorney representing South Shore Housing, said a structural
engineer was at the site yesterday, and that a contractor has been hired to
begin addressing the problems as soon as the permits to do the work are in
place.
"They are addressing with promptness all the concerns that are out there," Mr.
Walsh told the Board of Health last night.
But a state public health official attending the hearing said South Shore
Housing began addressing these issues only after it was forced to do so.
"When we contacted South Shore Housing about this problem several months ago, we
were told there was no problem, no mold, no flooding," said Howard S. Wensley,
director of a state laboratory for the state Department of Public Health.
"Obviously, we're hearing tonight that is not the case. South Shore Housing may
have had its head in the sand for some time ... and unfortunately, it took the
(condemning) of a building to force some action on their part."
At least one tenant claims that mold in the apartment is causing her a variety
of health problems.
Julie Florindo, who lived in a first-floor apartment in Building E for four
years, said toxic mold has made her and her teenage son very ill. Her hair is
falling out in clumps, which she keeps in little plastic bags to show officials
how the mold is affecting her. She also has terrible headaches and a series of
flu-like symptoms that have sent her to the hospital again and again. Her son
has had asthma and pneumonia-related problems that she blames on toxic mold
growing in the building's basement.
"This building is killing me," she said.
After officials from South Shore Housing and the town health department told her
there was nothing to be concerned about, she spent more than $250 to hire a home
inspector to test for mold. Doug L. Williams Sr., of American Home &
Environmental Co. in Centerville, said his inspection found 12 different types
of mold that existed in the building's basement and in Ms. Florindo's apartment.
He also found that ventilation systems meant to help dry out the basement were
instead sending the mold up into the apartments above.
The worst mold he found was called stachybotrys, which is not poisonous by
itself but produces a toxin that can be inhaled. Exposure to such a mold can
cause the flu-like symptoms that Ms. Florindo and her son experienced, he wrote
in his report. He also found other molds that are known to cause similar
reactions.
Ms. Florindo has been living in a motel room in Bourne since Dec. 13, and still
is unsure where South Shore Housing may send her next. Even a quick visit to her
apartment gives her a high fever, she said.
Other tenants in Building E, who were packing up and planning to leave for the
required two weeks, say they have had none of the problems described by Ms.
Florindo.
Kelly Svedine has lived in a second-floor apartment for more than a year with
her two young children. "It's not bothered me at all. I have had no problems,"
she said.
Another second-floor tenant, Kelly Smith, has lived in her apartment for four
years with her young son. She seemed to be taking the inconvenience of moving
out in stride. "It's a pain, but there's not much I can do about it," she said.
Staff writer Aaron Nicodemus can be reached at (508) 979-4482, or by e-mail
at anicodemus@s-t.com
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