HomeLatest NewsFeatured HomebuildersHome Buyer ResourcesBinding ArbitrationResource LinksSubmit ComplaintsView ComplaintsTake Action 101!Report Mortgage FraudMortgage Fraud NewsForeclosure NewsConstruction DefectsHome DefectsPhoto GalleryFoundation ProblemsHomeowner Website LinksHOA Reform
Main Menu
Home
Latest News
Featured Homebuilders
Home Buyer Resources
Binding Arbitration
Resource Links
Submit Complaints
View Complaints
Take Action 101!
Report Mortgage Fraud
Mortgage Fraud News
Foreclosure News
Construction Defects
Home Defects
Photo Gallery
Foundation Problems
Homeowner Website Links
HOA Reform
Featured Topics
Builder Death Spiral
Report Mortgage Fraud
Foreclosure Special Report
Mold & New Home Guide
Special News Reports
Centex & Habitability
How Fast Can They Build Them?
TRCC Editorial
Texas TRCC Scandal
Texas Watch - Tell Lawmakers
TRCC Recommendations
Sandra Bullock
People's Lawyer
Prevent Nightmare Homes
Choice Homes
Smart Money
Weekly Update Message
HOBB Archives
About HOBB
Contact Us
Fair Use Notice
Legislative Work
Your House

 HOBB News Alerts
and Updates

Click Here to Subscribe

Support HOBB - Become a Sustaining Member
Who's Online
We have 1 guest online
ABC Special Report
Investigation: New Home Heartbreak
Trump - NAHB Homebuilders Shoddy Construction and Forced Arbitration
Mole Update
Monday, 02 January 2006
Monday Morning Mold (Mycology) Januar 2, 2006 \n This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it >
 
$Account.OrganizationName
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Happy New Year! Monday Morning Mold (Mycology) Januar 2, 2006
Mold (Mycology) in the Media
January 2, 2006
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mold (Mycology) Stories - from Cynthia Anne Coulter (Mulvihill) of Hyde Mulvihill, APC
-- Afltatoxin tainted food kills 23 dogs, sickens 18 (Chicago Tribune, United States - Dec 31, 2005)
-- How Returning Gulf Coast Residents Can Best Clean Up Dangerous Mold - Scrubbing Moldy Walls Will Not Protect Families in Badly Flooded Homes (YubaNet, CA - Dec 30, 2005)
-- To break house mold, eliminate at the source - Is there any new information regarding the health risks of living in a "sick house" that contains toxic mold such as penicillium, aspergillus or stachybotrys? (Newsday, NY - Dec 27, 2005)
-- How healthy is your home? (SouthFlorida.com, FL - Dec 30, 2005)
-- $25 Mil. Catholic Healthcare West Mold Lawsuit (San Jose Mercury News, USA - Dec 29, 2005)
-- U.S. braces for Katrina car scams (The State, SC - Dec 29, 2005)
-- Mold Education: Aspergillus fumigatus genome project
-- School Mold: Clearing the air in Hyannis (Cape Cod Times, MA - Jan 1, 2006)
-- Mold & Insurance: From New England to Virginia, Courts Made Insurance Headlines in 2005 (Insurance Journal - Dec 29, 2005)
-- Court Mold: Charleston County sues Judicial Center Contractor for Mold (Charleston Post Courier, SC - Dec 29, 2005)
-- Mold & Technology: RestorationSOS(TM) is changing the way victims recover from water disasters. (PR Leap, CA - Dec 30, 2005)
-- Mold & Technology: Atmospheric Glow Technologies, Inc. is Attacking Mold in Schools (Business Wire, CA - Dec 27, 2005)
-- Mold & Technology: Front doormat traps Mold (Inside Bay Area, CA - Jan 1, 2006)
-- Mold & Technology: A green way to clean (Gwinnett Daily Post, GA - Dec 29, 2005)
-- Mold Professionals: Mold Litigation Consulting
-- Mold Professionals: Har-Bro
-- Mold Investigation: Clark Seif Clark, Inc.
-- For Fun: Justice is blind, but has ear for humor - Professor uses transcripts to see who on high court gets most laughs — and it's Scalia (Houston Chronicle, United States - Dec 30, 2005)

 

Happy New Year!

This week's lead photo is Aspergillus fumigatus from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health website.

Hot tips on mold? Please e-mail them to Cynthia A. Coulter at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it


Afltatoxin tainted food kills 23 dogs, sickens 18 (Chicago Tribune, United States - Dec 31, 2005)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Contaminated dog food sold in 23 states killed nearly two dozen dogs and sickened 18 more, the Food and Drug Administration said Friday.

The 23 deaths and 18 illnesses sparked an FDA investigation into the pet food made by the Diamond Pet Food Company at its Gaston, S.C., plant.

Click here for Afltatoxin tainted food kills 23 dogs, sickens 18 (Chicago Tribune, United States - Dec 31, 2005)


How Returning Gulf Coast Residents Can Best Clean Up Dangerous Mold - Scrubbing Moldy Walls Will Not Protect Families in Badly Flooded Homes (YubaNet, CA - Dec 30, 2005)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The only way that Gulf Coast residents with badly flooded homes may be able to protect themselves from dangerously high mold levels is to rip out contaminated drywall to the studs, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council. New NRDC tests of mold-contaminated New Orleans homes show that merely removing furniture and carpeting and scrubbing down mold-covered walls will not safeguard residents' health.

"Seriously flooded homes are likely to remain dangerous unless they are gutted to the studs," said Dr. Gina Solomon, M.D., who led the NRDC research team. "But homes that were briefly flooded with less than a few inches of water and have no visible mold probably don't have a serious mold problem."

Click here for How Returning Gulf Coast Residents Can Best Clean Up Dangerous Mold - Scrubbing Moldy Walls Will Not Protect Families in Badly Flooded Homes (YubaNet, CA - Dec 30, 2005)


To break house mold, eliminate at the source - Is there any new information regarding the health risks of living in a "sick house" that contains toxic mold such as penicillium, aspergillus or stachybotrys? (Newsday, NY - Dec 27, 2005)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The best source is a recent and comprehensive review of already-available information called "Damp Indoor Spaces and Health," a report published in 2004 by the National Academies' Institute of Medicine. Researchers and practitioners in the field consider this report to be the gold standard on what is known and unknown, likely and unlikely, about the health effects of household mold.

The institute's committee of experts found "sufficient evidence to conclude that the presence of mold [is associated] with cough, wheeze, asthma symptoms in sensitized asthmatic persons, and hypersensitivity pneumonitis [a relatively rare immune-mediated condition] in susceptible persons." It also found limited evidence that mold can cause lower respiratory-tract illness in otherwise healthy children.

Click here for To break house mold, eliminate at the source - Is there any new information regarding the health risks of living in a "sick house" that contains toxic mold such as penicillium, aspergillus or stachybotrys? (Newsday, NY - Dec 27, 2005)


How healthy is your home? (SouthFlorida.com, FL - Dec 30, 2005)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Could that persistent cough or cold mean your child is allergic to her home? It's a strong possibility - and something worth checking even if your doctor doesn't suggest it. Many asthma sufferers are unaware that their symptoms may be reactions to the air they breathe. Air quality experts agree that:

 

  • Chemicals and toxins in the environment can cause irritation, yet they are often overlooked as the cause of common respiratory and allergy problems.
  • More medications are being prescribed to deal with symptoms that may be alleviated simply by eliminating the toxins in the environment.

 

Click here for How healthy is your home? (SouthFlorida.com, FL - Dec 30, 2005)


$25 Mil. Catholic Healthcare West Mold Lawsuit (San Jose Mercury News, USA - Dec 29, 2005)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OXNARD, Calif. (AP) - St. John's Regional Medical Center has been removing mold for at least two years while mediators work to resolve a lawsuit against dozens of contractors that failed to rid the hospital of the substance.

The 2003 Superior Court suit, which blamed construction defects that allowed moisture and water to enter the building's windows and walls, is now in arbitration. Attorneys met two weeks ago to update the court on their progress and another hearing was scheduled for May.

Click here for $25 Mil. Catholic Healthcare West Mold Lawsuit (San Jose Mercury News, USA - Dec 29, 2005)


U.S. braces for Katrina car scams (The State, SC - Dec 29, 2005)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ST. BERNARD PARISH, La. - As the vast vehicular wreckage wrought by Hurricane Katrina is carted away, law enforcement and insurance officials are anticipating the arrival of tens of thousands of those vehicles on used-car lots across the United States.

Already there is anecdotal evidence of flood- damaged vehicles turning up on used-car lots in Florida, Arizona, New York and Oklahoma, authorities said. Two months ago, at least seven 2005 Nissans listed in the National Insurance Crime Bureau database as hurricane-damaged were sold at an auction in Los Angeles.

Click here for U.S. braces for Katrina car scams (The State, SC - Dec 29, 2005)


Mold Education: Aspergillus fumigatus genome project
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Aspergillus fumigatus causes more infections worldwide than any other mould. Four percent of all patients dying in tertiary care hospitals in Europe have invasive aspergillosis. The fungus causes allergic deseases in asthmatics and patients suffering from cystic fibrosis. Invasive aspergillosis can occur in individuals with cavities caused by tuberculosis or other cystic lung diseases. More information about A. fumigatus can be found at the Aspergillus web site.

The Sanger Institute and its collaborators, Dr. David Denning and Dr. Andrew Brass at the University of Manchester, have been funded to carry out a pilot genomic analysis of Aspergillus fumigatus. This will involve preparing a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) library of A. fumigatus, to fingerprint 3000 BAC clones generating a physical map and then to sequence 10 physically linked BAC clones. A. fumigatus has an estimated genome size of 30- 35 Mb. We are also funded to carry our a whole genome shotgun of A. fumigatus in collaboration with The Institute of Genome Research (TIGR).

Click here for Mold Education: Aspergillus fumigatus genome project


School Mold: Clearing the air in Hyannis (Cape Cod Times, MA - Jan 1, 2006)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kathy Astrauckas never suffered from an allergy in her life. But in September 2004 she started a job as an English as Second Language teacher at Hyannis East Elementary School. Along with her new post came an onset of sinus infections and bronchitis. One night, she woke with a swollen tongue and face. Rushed to the hospital, the Sandwich resident discovered she suffered from severe allergies. But to what?

''According to allergy testing, it was to mold and dust mites,'' she said. Astrauckas now takes three prescription drugs and must carry an Epi-pen (epinephrine injection) in case of another severe attack.

Click here for School Mold: Clearing the air in Hyannis (Cape Cod Times, MA - Jan 1, 2006)


Mold & Insurance: From New England to Virginia, Courts Made Insurance Headlines in 2005 (Insurance Journal - Dec 29, 2005)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
From Maine to Virginia, many of the insurance headlines in 2005 dealt with compensation and reinsurance probes, just as they did across the country, casting the industry's reputation in a bad light.

But much of the most interesting regional and local insurance news in 2005 took place in the courts of law and not in the court of public opinion.

Click here for Mold & Insurance: From New England to Virginia, Courts Made Insurance Headlines in 2005 (Insurance Journal - Dec 29, 2005)


Court Mold: Charleston County sues Judicial Center Contractor for Mold (Charleston Post Courier, SC - Dec 29, 2005)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Perhaps it was inevitable that the dispute over the Charleston County Judicial Center's construction would play out on legal papers filed within the building itself.

The county has sued contractor Bill Harbert Construction of Birmingham, Ala., seeking money to correct lingering problems with the $48 million building off Meeting, Broad and King streets.

Click here for Court Mold: Charleston County sues Judicial Center Contractor for Mold (Charleston Post Courier, SC - Dec 29, 2005)


Mold & Technology: RestorationSOS(TM) is changing the way victims recover from water disasters. (PR Leap, CA - Dec 30, 2005)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(PRLEAP.COM) Experts agree that if treated in a timely manner, water damage can be controlled and minimized, restoration costs can be reduced, and most importantly, mold growth can be prevented.

As a customer, searching for a restoration professional, you probably want fast reaction but at the same time you want to hire a reputable company with proper licensing and insurance. You also want the bill to be charged directly to your insurance company, and yeah, you want to see some recommendations.

Click here for Mold & Technology: RestorationSOS(TM) is changing the way victims recover from water disasters. (PR Leap, CA - Dec 30, 2005)


Mold & Technology: Atmospheric Glow Technologies, Inc. is Attacking Mold in Schools (Business Wire, CA - Dec 27, 2005)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
KNOXVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 27, 2005--Atmospheric Glow Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB:AGWT)(AGT) is donating the use of its PlasmaAire(TM) TriClean Max to an East Tennessee school system that has been experiencing mold contamination. With PlasmaAire(TM) patented technology, airborne contaminants such as bacteria, mold, and odor-causing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are removed and destroyed. The TriClean Max operates without releasing harmful levels of ozone into the room.

Once the surface mold was removed, "we simply rolled the TriClean into the room and turned it on," said Ron Domitrovic, an AGT engineer. AGT is having the air quality independently tested before and after the use of its PlasmaAire(TM) product.

Click here for Mold & Technology: Atmospheric Glow Technologies, Inc. is Attacking Mold in Schools (Business Wire, CA - Dec 27, 2005)


Mold & Technology: Front doormat traps Mold (Inside Bay Area, CA - Jan 1, 2006)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GERM CONTROL starts at the front door for Debbie Greenspan of Rockville, Md., who grew up battling allergies and asthma. After daughter Haley was born in 2002, Greenspan became increasingly concerned about household allergens and toxins.

With a professional background in hotel and restaurant management — she worked in the hotel industry for 20 years, and had taken many classes in housekeeping and sanitation — she knew many contaminants were tracked indoors on the bottoms of shoes, so she went looking for experts to help her develop a doormat to keep the mold, mildew and other microorganisms outside.

Click here for Mold & Technology: Front doormat traps Mold (Inside Bay Area, CA - Jan 1, 2006)


Mold & Technology: A green way to clean (Gwinnett Daily Post, GA - Dec 29, 2005)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A new year calls for a new home. If your new year’s resolution is to clear out last year’s clutter, the following tips will help you create a home that’s fresher, cleaner — and greener.

Linda Mason Hunter, author of “Creating a Safe and Healthy Home” and co-author of “Green Clean: The Environmentally Sound Guide to Cleaning Your Home,” is the queen of all things green. Living green refers to keeping your home clean without the excessive use of chemical cleansers and hazardous substances. Hunter said that contrary to common belief, the green lifestyle generally requires fewer materials for you to purchase, not more. It is also inexpensive and requires no more time than your usual cleaning routine, she said. “It just takes a change in the way you do things,” Hunter said. Living green

Click here for Mold & Technology: A green way to clean (Gwinnett Daily Post, GA - Dec 29, 2005)


Mold Professionals: Mold Litigation Consulting
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cynthia Coulter Mulvihill Some people already know this, but if you don't, here it is. For quite some time, I have been acting as a mold litigation consultant on various matters. I consult with Plaintiffs and Claimants - or potential Plaintiffs and Claimants; Defendants and potential defendants; attorneys; and expert witnesses.

Depending on who retains me, and when, I will:

  • Analyze a person's property damage and personal injuries
  • Conduct a property inspection
  • Review medical records
  • Determine if there is a causal link between the property damage and personal injuries
  • Research what needs to be done to prove -- or disprove -- the property damage, the personal injuries, and any causal link
  • Determine what entity or entities might have caused property damage
  • Review insurance policies to determine if insurance coverage is available for the claims
  • Determine what kind of experts need to be retained to prove or disprove a case
  • Provide referrals to experts
  • Prepare expert witnesses for depositions
  • Prepare written discovery
  • Prepare attorneys for questioning of expert witnesses
Keep in mind that in doing this, I am retained as an attorney. What I do is attorney-client and attorney work-product privileged.

 

Click here for Mold Professionals: Mold Litigation Consulting


Mold Professionals: Har-Bro
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HAR-BRO is the largest and most experienced disaster restoration company in California and Nevada. With seven offices strategically located in Southern and Northern California, Nevada and Arizona. HAR-BRO can respond immediately to any disaster with the appropriate, experienced personnel, state-of-the-art equipment and materials. More than 200 experienced employees are dedicated to the company’s number one goal: Customer Satisfaction.

Har-Bro work around the clock to be there when you need us. For emergency services, take comfort in knowing that you can rely on HAR-BRO.

Click here for Mold Professionals: Har-Bro


Mold Investigation: Clark Seif Clark, Inc.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CSC, Inc. is an environmental consulting firm headquartered in Chatsworth CA with a staff of engineers, geologists, certified industrial hygienists and other technically-trained professionals has investigated and managed hundreds of sites. We have a full understanding of the requirements outlined in CERCLA, RCRA, NEPA, TSCA, AHERA and HUD, as well as other federal, state and local environmental regulations.

Moisture Control is the key for microbial management. Moisture in buildings can be in the form of water vapor or as a liquid. The presence of moisture on the surface of building materials or inside structural components is the primary factor in sustaining microbial growth, which may lead to exposure to microbial emissions of spores and their metabolites, such as particle-containing mycotoxins and microbial Volatile organic compounds (mVOCs).

Click here for Mold Investigation: Clark Seif Clark, Inc.


For Fun: Justice is blind, but has ear for humor - Professor uses transcripts to see who on high court gets most laughs — and it's Scalia (Houston Chronicle, United States - Dec 30, 2005)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Justice Antonin Scalia's wit is widely admired, and now it has been quantified. He is, a new study concludes, 19 times as funny as Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Transcripts of oral arguments at the U.S. Supreme Court have long featured the notation "[laughter]" after a successful quip from a justice or lawyer. But until October 2004, justices were not identified by name, making it impossible to construct a reliable index of judicial wit.

Click here For Fun: Justice is blind, but has ear for humor - Professor uses transcripts to see who on high court gets most laughs — and it's Scalia (Houston Chronicle, United States - Dec 30, 2005)


Monday Morning Mold Archives
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
  • Hyde Mulvihill APC
  • Monday Morning Mold Archives - 2004
  • Monday Morning Mold Archives - 2003
  • More About Us

  • Quick Links...
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
  • Our Website
  • Services
  • Our New BLOG (Web Log)
  • Wills and Trusts


  • Contact Information
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    phone: 626-358-7471
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    Forward email

    This email was sent to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , by This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
    Powered by
     

    Hyde Mulvihill Lawyers | 216 W. Foothill Blvd | PO Box 1007 | Monrovia | CA | 91017

     
    < Prev   Next >
    Search HOBB.org

    Reckless Endangerment
    BY: GRETCHEN MORGENSON
    and JOSHUA ROSNER

    Outsized Ambition, Greed and
    Corruption Led to
    Economic Armageddon


    Amazon
    Barnes & Noble

    NPR Special Report
    Part I Listen Now
    Perry Home - No Warranty 
    Part II Listen Now
    Texas Favors Builders

    Washington Post
    The housing bubble, in four chapters
    BusinessWeek Special Reports
    Bonfire of the Builders
    Homebuilders helped fuel the housing crisis
    Housing: That Sinking Feeling

    Consumer Affairs Builder Complaints

    IS YOUR STATE NEXT?
    As Goes Texas So Goes the Nation
    Knowledge and Financial Responsibility are still Optional for Texas Home Builders

    OUTSTANDING FOX4 REPORT
    TRCC from Bad to Worse
    Case of the Crooked House

    TRCC AN ARRESTING EXPERIENCE
    The Pat and Bob Egert Building & TRCC Experience 

    Build it right the first time
    An interview with Janet Ahmad

    Bad Binding Arbitration Experience?
    This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
    or call 1-210-402-6800

    top of page

    © 2024 HomeOwners for Better Building
    Joomla! is Free Software released under the GNU/GPL License.