Fire crew moves into new digs

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Fire crew moves into new digs

Temporary quarters necessary until building is rid of mold problem

By Mara Stine

Gresham Outlook - Gresham,OR

http://www.theoutlookonline.com/news/story.php?

story_id=117953957507862700

Gresham firefighters displaced by mold in their fire station have a

new temporary home.

In late April, crews at Station 76, at Southeast 302nd Avenue and

Dodge Park Boulevard, moved out of a travel trailer parked in the

station's parking lot and into a singlewide manufactured home

purchased for $150 from the Oregon Department of Transportation.

It will probably take about three months to make repairs necessary

to make the station habitable, said Dave Brugato, Gresham's

facilities and fleet manager.

Those repairs include replacing the roof and installing a new

heating and air conditioning system. Multnomah County Rural Fire

Protection District 10, which owns the building, will pay for the

$30,000 to $40,000 price tag, said Mike McKeel, chairman of the fire

district board. The district contracts with Gresham Fire & Emergency

Services for fire protection and emergency medical service.

Once the roof and ventilation system are replaced, Gresham's

facilities staff will replace soggy carpe and moldy sheetrock and

clean the lockers, as well as other interior areas affected by the

mold, Brugato said. Estimated cleanup cost for the interior is

$10,000 to $15,000, which will require a contingency transfer from

the city's general fund to the facilities fund, as well as approval

from the City Council.

" I don't think it's going to be as extensive as we initially

thought, " Brugato said of the interior work. Estimates based on the

assumption there was mold throughout the building came in at $25,000

to $30,000. However, the mold is limited to various rooms.

Health complaints, ranging from itchy eyes to respiratory problems,

teamed with a mold-covered pillow, caused Gresham officials to call

in mold testers in late February.

Firefighters vacated the building until the results came in. Three-

person crews worked out of a mobile command trailer borrowed from

the Multnomah County Department of Emergency Management and slept in

the tight quarters of a travel trailer, including one full bed and

two child-sized bunks.

Test on the building showed elevated levels of Penicillium and

Aspergillus versicolor. Although both are considered common indoor

molds, they are known to cause allergic reactions, as well as

respiratory diseases. The report also recommended repairing the fire

station's roof and ventilation systems.