Moms say mold made students sick

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Moms say mold made students sick

Bradenton Herald - FL*

By MAURA POSSLEY

mpossley@...

SLIDESHOW | Moms say mold made students sick

http://www.bradenton.com/local/story/242540.html

EAST MANATEE --At the start of the school year, a band of East

Manatee mothers noticed their 6-year-olds complaining of head and

stomach aches, vomiting, coughing and joint pain.

They thought the children were adjusting to first-grade at Tara

Elementary or perhaps a new exercise course they were taking.

But symptoms persisted into the fall, they say, and as parents

talked to one another they have come to believe moldy conditions

inside their children's portable classroom are to blame.

Towell said her daughter, Dana, stayed home sick seven days in

a two-week period.

Jodie ' son, Brady, treats his asthma with a nebulizer almost

daily, up from regular seasonal treatment, she said.

Tara said her son, Dillon, has frequent nosebleeds, and

coughs constantly.

" The kids tell us so-and-so threw up today, " Towell said. " That's

not conducive to learning. "

The Manatee County School District ordered tests on the conditions

of two Tara portables that showed moisture near one of the

bathrooms, said district spokeswoman Margi Nanney.

" Whenever there's moisture, there could be mold present, " she

said. " The district immediately responds to those cases. "

Needed repairs are being addressed, Nanney said, with crews

replacing roofing and installing new air conditioning units.

Meanwhile, students were moved to different classrooms, she said.

" I can't say whether these symptoms are related to these portables

or not, " Nanney said. " After the conditions of the repairs are

satisfied . . . the children will be moved back in because the

problem would have been solved at that point. "

But the mothers say repairs won't help what they describe as

permanent mold damage.

" Because Manatee County schools doesn't have the money, the kids

suffer, " said. " They're just band-aiding it. There's nowhere

to put them. That is not the children's problem, it's not the

parent's problem, it's a school district problem. "

The parents contacted the Bradenton Herald Thursday seeking to

spotlight the issue.

" We're just not getting any response, " Towell said of school

district officials. " This has been going on for two months now, so

obviously being nice isn't helping, being understanding isn't

helping. It's not to be malicious or make trouble. They're pacifying

us. "

Added : " In the meantime, they're putting the 6-year-olds'

health at risk. It's unfair that the kids have to pay. "