'Killer mold' has been in the news on a regular basis lately as it strikes the rich, the poor, and the middle-class. It hits homeowners and apartment dwellers. It closes elementary schools. It touches the lives of the famous - Erin Brockovich, whose story about another toxin was made into a movie, the not so famous - Susan Blanton and Julie Coefield of Newport Beach and the newly famous -- Melinda Ballard of Dripping Springs, Texas.
Much like the script of a grade-B Hollywood movie or soap opera television series, this story scares us with the terror of a toxic mold that thrives in dark, damp areas. The scary killer, a slimy black growth known as stachybotris chartarum, creates spores that torment the residents of the home with medical problems and mysterious headaches. It wreaks havoc with the structural integrity of the home, closes an elementary school in Texas and it ends with courtroom drama scenes.
Excessive mold created by too much moisture in a home can lead to respiratory ailments and allergic reactions. The mold is most likely found in places where condensations and dampness exist - basements, crawl spaces, attics, ceilings, walls, windows, and doors.
California has addressed the problem with a pending law called the Toxic Mold Protection Act (SB 732), which requires sellers or renters to provide disclosure to purchasers and tenants about mold. The state health department is also required under the legislation to adopt regulations concerning permissible exposure limits of mold.
In a legal case in Texas, a Dripping Springs family won a $32 million award from their homeowner's insurance carrier, Farmers Insurance Group, because of a mishandled claim for a water leak that caused the slimy black mold to take over their dream home. The 22-room mansion owned by Melinda Ballard and Ron Allison had to be vacated because of their illness, including neurological damage in Allison, and asthma in their young son.
Ballard discovered that even the Governor's Mansion in Texas was treated for mold when Laura Bush was showing signs of sensitivity to the mold in an air conditioning system. And Farmers Insurance Group has announced that it will no longer cover mold claims.
New homes can also create the perfect environment for the toxic mold. Erin Brockovich's new 4,000 square-foot home in Agoura Hills, California, is contaminated by the mold. Nancy Seats, the founder of Homeowners Against Deficient Dwellings, hears many complaints about mold in new homes due to moisture and shoddy construction. Their 'Sick Homes' section refers to mold as a 'huge problem' and list links to twenty articles or media coverage just for the month of August 2001!
Where will it end? Or, will it end? Will the Centers for Disease Control look for scientific proof of medical problems caused by mold? Will there be a new Erin Brockovich sequel movie about toxic mold? Will we see a new industry comprised of mold mediation companies? Will mold litigation become a specialty for attorneys? Stay tuned.
Pat Rioux
