MOLD DISCOVERED IN EAST HALL SUITE
By Jennifer Christensen
Comment Staff
Recently, black mold was discovered in a first-floor suite in East Hall. The residents who lived in the suite noticed a heavy leak coming from the ceiling.
“The piping was leaking because it wasn’t insulated,” Ali Costa, one of the residents of the suite said. “That’s what caused the mold.”
When she first saw the problem, Costa called the resident director and a maintainer. According to Costa, a bucket was placed under the leak, but they did not try to fix it right away and the ceiling did not stop leaking.
The resident director of East Hall, Richardson Pierre-Louis, declined to comment for this story.
Costa later learned her suite was not the only one with a ceiling problem. “They knew about this problem in the summertime because they had to replace the ceilings on the first floor,” she said.
According to Patty Delaney, the environmental health and safety officer at Bridgewater State University, “Molds are fungi that can be found both indoors and outdoors. Mold growth can be slowed by controlling humidity levels.”
On September 17, the residents in the suite were told there was mold in the ceiling. One resident had to move to a different room in East Hall because construction was going to start inside the suite to fix the problem.
“They took down the entire ceiling and said there was more black mold than they thought,” Costa said. “We were all exposed to it.”
When asked about the status of the ceiling, Joe Amato, the facilities manager at Residence Life and Housing said, “It’s done and we’re waiting until Christmas to paint it.”
According to the Center for Disease Control’s website, “In 2004 the Institute of Medicine (IOM) found there was sufficient evidence to link indoor exposure to mold with upper respiratory tract symptoms, cough, and wheeze in otherwise healthy people.”
“Mold growth can be removed from hard surfaces with commercial products, soap and water, or a bleach solution,” said Delaney.
According to Costa, the resident of the suite who was forced to move out is still unable to move back in. She is still living in a separate room at this time.
Jennifer Christensen is a Comment news writer. Email her at jchristensen@student.bridgew.edu.
