Cat Andersen/Eyewitness News Beech Grove – Inspectors cited Beech Grove’s city hall with a number of health violations. Leaks and poor drainage has led to serious mold problems, yet some city employees are still working there. Inside the Beech Grove City Hall, you’ll find puddles on tables, rotting ceiling tiles, warped walls and carpets and mold on every level from the vents to the water-logged basement. The city council meetings have been moved from that building to the community center, and so have the courts. “The conditions just aren’t acceptable for people to be there and that’s why they moved... View Article
The first step in addressing any mold growth problem in a building is identifying and correcting moisture source(s) (see Where Does Mold Grow?). If moisture problems are not corrected, then any mold cleanup or removal that takes place will most likely be only a short-term solution; at some point the mold growth will recur. It is critical to control moisture at the beginning, during, and at the end of a mold growth removal project. One of the most common misconceptions about mold is that it can be removed by spraying the surfaces with products such as disinfectants, biocides or cleaners.... View Article
United States Air and Radiation (6609J) Research and Development Environmental Protection (MD-56) Agency February 1991 Indoor Air Facts No. 4 (revised) Sick Building Syndrome Introduction The term “sick building syndrome” (SBS) is used to describe situations in which building occupants experience acute health and comfort effects that appear to be linked to time spent in a building, but no specific illness or cause can be identified. The complaints may be localized in a particular room or zone, or may be widespread throughout the building. In contrast, the term “building related illness” (BRI) is used when symptoms of diagnosable illness are... View Article
Johnny Carson’s sidekick has found little to laugh at lately. His dog died, his family has been sick and he’s blaming the insurance company. Ed McMahon, 79, claims the insurance company botched a simple repair on a broken pipe. As a result, he says, a black toxic mold spread through his 8,000-square-foot, six-bedroom Beverly Hills mansion. In a lawsuit filed this week, the entertainer is seeking $20 million from American Equity Insurance Co., two insurance adjusters and several environmental cleanup contractors. “It started with a broken water pipe, which is not a big deal,” said McMahon’s lawyer, Allan Browne. “It... View Article
Nationwide, only 20% of American homes at risk for floods are covered by flood insurance. Most private insurers do not insure against the peril of flood due to the prevalence of adverse selection, which is the purchase of insurance by persons most affected by the specific peril of flood. In traditional insurance, insurers use the economic law of large numbers to charge a relatively small fee to large numbers of people in order to pay the claims of the small numbers of claimants who have suffered a loss. Unfortunately, in flood insurance, the numbers of claimants is larger than the... View Article
