Good Morning,

Happy Independence Day!

For those of you that are interested in things other than mold, I've started a new blog (weblog). This week, I wrote on Wills & Trusts: Yes, You Should Worry About "The Little Things". Previous blogs are: I Just Got Fired. Why Can't I Find a Lawyer to Help Me? and On Becoming a Small Town Lawyer in California. Click here for California Small Town Lawyer Blogspot.

Hot tips on mold? Please let me know. Send information to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , Cynthia Coulter Mulvihihll, Esq Hyde Mulvihill APC 216 W. Foothill Boulevard Monrovia CA 91016.

The apartment resident, Esmeralda Mahaffy, developed permanent, severe asthma from exposure to high levels of toxic mold after her apartment was negligently repaired following a flood from a toilet in the apartment above her unit in 2001. The incident occurred after years of ignored complaints of water leakage and persistent mold on the walls and ceilings. The verdict followed a seven-day jury trial in April before Wayne County Circuit Court Judge John H. Gillis Jr.

The first disappointment came on the day they moved in. Bob Fogal, weary from unpacking, trudged upstairs to relax in his new whirlpool bath. When he got out, he pulled the plug and "all 100 gallons of that water came down through the dining room ceiling, into the light fixtures, down the columns, onto my dining room table and Oriental rugs," Jordan recalls. "And I just started screaming."

Click here for Home Sour Home News: What happens when a Republican homemaker goes up against an elusive construction company, a faceless bureaucracy, and the whole housing-industrial complex? (Mother Jones, CA - Jun 27, 2005)

Since July is historically a drier month than June, it will only take a few more weeks of dry weather to cause rapidly deteriorating conditions for some areas, state climatologist John Nielsen-Gammon said.

Click here for: Dry weather putting Texas in a Drought - Aflatoxins in corn crop may result (Denton Record Chronicle, TX - July 1, 2005)

Mycotoxins, to which aflatoxins belong, are naturally- occurring toxins produced by certain fungi that can grow on various foods such as cereals, nuts, dried fruits, apples and legumes under certain environmental conditions. Aflatoxins have been shown to cause cancer in animals and aflatoxin B1, the most toxic, can cause cancer in humans.

Click here for: Listeria and aflatoxins dominate food safety alerts in EU last week (Food Quality News, France - Jun 29, 2005)

Stepping inside, the question of why the two-story, single-family home is empty is answered, first by the smell of mold and second by dark growths visible on the walls and on ceiling beams shown by missing tiles. According to homeowner Kristine Choma, who bought 6 Magill Ave. Feb. 12, 2004, the molds present in her home and on her possessions are Stacchybotris and Aspergillus, the most toxic of molds whose airborne spores are poisonous when inhaled

Click here for: Homeowner says mold make her home uninhabitable (Troy Record, NY - Jun 26, 2005)

This wasn't the outcome she'd envisioned when, in the fall of 2003, she paid the Richmond Midlothian Home Depot $6,646 to install a new roof on her house in Fork Union. Using "superior materials," the company's website promises, roofs are installed by individuals in Home Depot's network of "hand-picked, licensed, independent professionals-- experts with years of experience."

Click here for: THE FEARLESS CONSUMER- Moudering claim: New roof comes too late (The Hook, VA - Jun 30, 2005)

Aflatoxins B1, B2 (glow blue under UV light), aflatoxins G1 and G2 (glow green) are the most common types of poison Aspergillus products encountered in the feed industry. Aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) is the much less carcinogenic metabolite of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) found in milk. The ingestion of aflatoxins suppress growth, productivity and immune function. These compounds cause severe liver damage and both intestinal and liver cancer in a wide variety of models. Productivity losses are noted in swine at .4ppm, in layers at 2ppm with a 50% drop in egg production at 10ppm and no eggs at 20ppm. Calf gain is suppressed .2ppm, and yearlings at 7ppm. Turkey poults are stunted at .25ppm and broilers at 1.5ppm. As little as 1ppb (with a "b") is carcinogenic to trout.3

Click here for Mold Education: Aflatoxins (toxic metabolite of some Aspergillus spp.)

Known throughout the education system as the Williams Settlement, every district with low- performing schools must participate in a four-year plan to monitor its facilities, books and faculty certification.

Click here for School Mold: Inspections show schools doing well - Visits stem from lawsuit settlement (Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, CA - Jun 26, 2005)

Previous studies have shown the benefits of one antifungal drug [itraconazole or Sporonoxâ] for the asthma subgroup known as "allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis" or "ABPA". The University of Manchester researchers are studying the more common association between fungal allergy and those with severe asthma who do not have ABPA. Volunteers are screened and, if testing shows allergy to one or more fungi, allocated itraconazole capsules or matching dummy capsules for 8 months. So far 26 patients ( 25% of the total required ) have been enrolled.

Click here for Mold & Medicine: Key Milestone In Antifungal Treatment For Severe Asthma (I-Newswire.com - Jun 18, 2005)

"Our hand sanitizer is unrivaled amongst the selection of hand sanitizers on the market today," said Brad Barnes, President of Zero Plus, Inc. "It's like putting on an invisible glove that won't wash off, and will continue killing germs for up to 60 hours. Now you don't have to think twice about shaking hands and grabbing doorknobs."

Click here for Mold & Technology: Zero Plus Hand Sanitizer and Protectant(TM) Launches Online Sales of Mold Killing Hand Sanitizer (Yahoo News - Jun 29, 2005)

Silage involves the storing and partial fermentation of forage plants such as wheat or corn in a silo. The primary acid produced by corn fermentation is lactic acid and this compound often gives fermented corn a sour note. Corn kernels containing any amount of mold, such as aflatoxins and moldy corn disease are potentially fatal if ingested by cattle. The zNose can pick up the bad gasses which human noses normally detect as musty smells, the company said.

Click here Mold & Technology: USDA Testing Use of Electronic Sensor to Detect Mold (Food Navigator, France - Jun 21, 2005)

The purpose of the contract, according to David Mudarri, Ph.D., Indoor Environments Division of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), "[is to promote EPA"s indoor air quality guidance and encourage its use as the basis for managing indoor environmental quality risks."

Click here for Mold & Technology: A&WMA Joins EEF's Advisory Group on Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Management Under EPA Contract (ArriveNet, CO - Jun 30, 2005

Disclaimer: Attending this event may be hazardous due to the large concentration of silly people, cars, motorcycles, motorhomes, concrete vehicle wheel-stops, potholes in the parking-lots and pets. Everyone present is responsible for their own actions. If you trip on something, or hurt yourself, you alone are responsible. There is no one to sue. No one either promotes this nor charges admission. If you do come, act safely! If you're accident prone, go somewhere else where you'll be safer. Neither Mugs Away Saloon, The City of Laguna Niguel nor Amtrak are responsible for this event, nor for assuring your safety. The City & the railroad would rather you didn't bother coming to this event. No one is carrying public liability insurance for this. Besides, would any insurance underwriter insure an event called, "Mooning Amtrak"?

For Fun: 26th Annual Mooning of Amtrak - July 9, 2005

HAR-BRO's construction services are available throughout California, Nevada, Arizona and Hawaii. In addition to our local construction services, HAR- BRO's team provides professional consulting worldwide.

Click here for Mold Remediation: HAR-BRO General Contractors