The effect of Katrina in the Gulf Coast-A study in Mold

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The effect of Katrina in the Gulf Coast-A study in Mold

Proliferation

THE EFFECT OF KATRINA IN THE GULF COAST-A STUDY IN MOLD

PROLIFERATION, CALIFORNIA, Oct. 21 -/E-Wire/-- It has been a year

since the worst hurricane season of the century affected Central

Florida.

While so far this season Florida has been spared from a major

storm, our neighboring states came face to face with disaster. On

August 29, 2005 Katrina, a category four hurricane, unleashed its

fury on Gulf Coast states creating havoc in its path. After the

storm, Mississippi was in shambles and New Orleans was submerged

under water, damaging oil rigs and refineries on its way. To add

insult to injury, three weeks later, Rita, the third lowest central

pressure hurricane in history, made landfall between the east of

Galveston, Texas and Port Sulphur, Louisiana. Torrential rains

weakened the already weak levees of Louisiana, re-flooding the

state. While higher gas prices are a direct consequence of these

hurricanes, a more threatening and devastating problem is directly

affecting the communities: Mold proliferation. 209 samples were

examined from Louisiana and Mississippi during the first month after

the storm. The type of mold present is a gauge to the extent of

water damage in a property. There are indicator genera associated

with high water activity, such as Epicoccum, Chaetomium and

Stachybotrys. This initial survey looks at the genera and

concentrations of the spores per cubic meter in order to assess

water damage and/or mold amplification in standing buildings

affected by Katrina.

September 1st-October 1st, 2005

Indoor Outdoor

Louisiana

Mississippi

Louisiana

Mississippi

With one month of data in, we can observe that fungal variability in

the outside air in Mississippi is greater than that observed in

Louisiana (24 genera Vs 13). Except for Curvularia, the

concentrations (spores/m3) genera common to both states was

relatively similar.

In both states, the major source of contamination is

Aspergillus/Penicillium spores although there is a 10-fold

difference in the concentration of these spores, with Louisiana

reporting 789,000 to 7 million spores/cubic meter reported in

Mississippi. Water damaged indicators were detected in both states.

However, concentrations and genera vary from state to state. In

Louisiana the indicator genera was comprised by Epicoccum,

Chaetomium, Ulocladium and Stachybotrys and concentrations did not

exceed 2000 spores/m3 . In Mississippi, a different set of

indicators was detected. Significant amplification was observed for

Paecilomyces (3,726,789 spores/m3 ), Memnoniella (292,423

spores/m3 ) and Scopulariopsis (283,572 spores/m3 ). In most cases,

wall checks detected higher concentrations of spores, even if a low

number of spores were detected in the unconfined common areas.

Epiccoccum concentrations were similar in both states.

While there are marked differences in the type, number of genera and

total concentrations between the two most affected states, the fact

remains that mold proliferation is a reality that the Gulf Coast

states will need to address. We can only speculate that the

amplification seen in just one month will worsen with time as the

extent of water damage increases due to a very slow recovery process.

We will continue to monitor the situation …

/SOURCE:

EMSL

-0-

10-21-2005

/CONTACT:

Dr. Blanca Cortes, Microbiology Laboratory Director and General

Manager, EMSL-Orlando, 5125 Adanson St. Suite 900, Orlando, Florida

32804 Phone: 407-599-8557

/WEB SITE: http://Website 1

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