Molds found in Carmel school; no closure is planned (Orchard Park Elementary)

[Guest guest]

http://www.starnews.com/news/articles/mold1007.html

Molds found in Carmel school; no closure is planned

By Holly Van Slambrook and Judy Wolf

Indianapolis Star

October 7, 2000

CARMEL, Ind. -- The molds that forced the closing of Westfield's library

last month were found in July at Orchard Park Elementary.

School officials did not notify parents until Thursday, when a letter was

sent home with students, Pam Knowles, past president of the Carmel Clay

Education Association, said Friday.

Orchard Park was closed for most of the 1980s after an outbreak of a mystery

illness that resulted in flulike symptoms and eye, nose and throat

irritation that affected most of the adult staff but few students.

There are no plans to close the school, Principal G. Biederstedt

said Friday night.

The molds were discovered last summer in an isolated area of the building,

her note said.

The school felt comfortable not informing parents because officials felt it

was isolated in one room, Biederstedt said. The room has been closed since

the molds were discovered last summer.

" Since we became aware of problems in other communities, we decided it was a

good idea to check the rest of the building, " she said, referring to

Westfield. She noted there also were concerns because of the humid summer

and the school's history of troubles.

Spot-testing has been conducted by ATC Associates of Indianapolis, which

identified the molds last summer. Test results are due midweek, Biederstedt

said, and parents will be notified immediately.

The concern began with a leak in a second-grade classroom sink, said

Knowles, who is now the school's union representative.

When teacher discovered the leak in April, the custodial staff

turned the water off. Staff returned July 17, pulled the sink apart and

found " really gross black mold, " Knowles said.

told the school and the Hamilton County Health Department.

Biederstedt notified the school district, which hired ATC to perform mold

and fiber surveys. The results, received nearly 10 days before school

started in August, showed that the predominant mold was stachybotrys,

Knowles said. Other molds were penicillium, chaetomium and aspergillus.

All except chaetomium were found in Westfield's library.

Orchard Park was closed in early December 1979 because of the mysterious

illness. Tests by local and state and federal officials never pinpointed a

cause.

The school reopened in fall 1986.

Symptoms of excessive exposure to molds range from coldlike symptoms and

allergic reactions to more serious respiratory maladies.

Copyright 2000 Indiana Newspapers Inc.