Women complaining of illnesses

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Women complaining of illnesses

Standard Freeholder - Cornwall,Ontario,Canada*

Posted By Trevor Pritchard

http://www.standard-freeholder.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?

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If her landlords had dealt with the mould problem when she first

noticed it, Laretta Ranger swears her two-month old kitten,

Munchies, would still be alive.

" My animals are the most important thing to me, " said Ranger, 24,

who lives in the apartment complex at 1451 Brookdale Ave. " They

don't know better. They think it's cat food. "

Ranger and her roommate, 22-year-old Tricia Poirier, claim their

complaints about the mould growing in a foot-long crevice in their

bathroom wall have gone ignored by apartment management for five

months.

The two women blame the mould as the source of a long list of health

problems they allege have plagued both themselves and their six

cats.

Ranger, who has received disability benefits since she was 18,

explained that her exposure to the mould has taken a severe toll on

her already compromised immune system.

Both she and Poirier, who is also on disability, said they've been

suffering from colds, sore throats, and other ailments much more

frequently since moving into the apartment.

But it's the cats who've been most affected, said Ranger. When the

bathroom gets humid, mould spores fall to the ground and the cats

lick them up, she said.

Ranger firmly believes that's why their kitten, Munchies, died last

year, and why their remaining cats are vomiting and suffering from

constant diarrhea.

" Your cat gets sick, it's a couple thousand dollars to get the

tests, to get the medicine, " said Ranger.

" When you're on a (fixed) income, you can't do that. "

Both Ranger and Poirier's building and a neighbouring complex at

1421 Brookdale Ave. are owned by TransGlobe Property Management

Services.

Many of the people living in the two buildings are either on fixed

incomes or are senior citizens, and according to the Cornwall and

Area Housing Corporation, about 70 tenants are on the city's social

housing registry.

Residents have complained numerous times over the past year about

what they've seen as shoddy maintenance practices on TransGlobe's

part.

In November, tenants at 1421 Brookdale were upset after they spent

more than three weeks without hot water as they waited for

management to install a new boiler. There were also complaints in

May that garbage was piling up outside the complex. Yet while Ranger

and Poirier say they've made 30 to 40 complaints about the mould

situation to management, the police, and the health unit,

TransGlobe's records paint a different picture, said Dillon,

the company's director of marketing and public relations.

While one tenant living at 1421 Brookdale had recently reported a

mildew problem in their apartment, Dillon said their company has

received no complaints of mould growing at either complex. It would

be highly unlikely, he promised, for a building superintendent not

to fully report any maintenance problems that had been raised by a

renter.

" Once we get a tenant telling us something's wrong with a unit, we

respond, " said Dillon.

" There's no value in us not doing it (since retaining clients) is

our biggest ally. "

Health Canada considers mould in residential buildings to be a

potential health hazard, and people living in mould-infested homes

are more prone to suffer from coughing, wheezing, and headaches.

Barry , chief building official for the city, said Cornwall's

property standards bylaw forces buildings to meet certain minimum

standards when it comes to dampness and ventilation.

Going into a building and eradicating mould, however, is not the

city's responsibility, said .

Rather than put her health at further risk, Ranger said she's given

her landlords two months' notice, and she and Poirier will be

vacating the apartment by April. They both worry, however, that

being on a fixed income will severely hurt their chances of finding

a better place to live.

" If we don't find a decent place by April, where the hell are we

going? That's an issue, " said Ranger. " The only places that'll

accept you are the dumps. "

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