Gloucester County, NJ medical examiner discovers mold in his basement was making

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Gloucester County, NJ medical examiner discovers mold in his basement was making

him ill

JAN HEFLER • The Philadelphia Inquirer • December 23, 2010

http://www.dailyrecord.com/article/20101223/UPDATES01/312230013/1005/news01/NJ+m\

edical+examiner+finds+source+of+his+mysterious+illness

WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP, N.J. (AP) — The South Jersey medical examiner had a hunch

that something lurking in his house was slowly killing him. Was it mold in his

basement? Contaminated drinking water?

Or could it be little Dinky, Gerald in's innocent-looking but constantly

shedding Chihuahua-terrier mix?

Until now, in wasn't sure.

For the last 18 months, the pathologist alternately slept in his backyard tent

(with a heater) and a rented condominium while he tried to figure out why he

continually felt like there was a " knife twisting in my gut. "

in recently returned to his home in Washington Township, Gloucester County,

and was reunited with his wife and teenage son. His first suspect — black mold —

was finally discovered, buried behind insulation in his hobby-filled, partially

finished basement.

Previous consultants had ruled out mold and its byproduct, mycotoxins, but they

were dead wrong, in now says. His backup theory - an allergy to Dinky - also

proved false.

" It wasn't the dog. . . . He could have had some mold on him, " in said,

explaining why a red bump appeared on his skin when he injected himself with a

bit of Dinky's fur. He had considered giving Dinky away if he didn't get answers

soon.

" I think I was looking for an excuse, a reason, " after several contractors,

mold-abatement specialists, and environmental consultants discounted mold as the

cause of his illness, he said. One contractor even drilled holes into his stucco

walls and couldn't find it.

in, 55, who has testified in numerous murder trials in Camden, Gloucester,

and Salem Counties during the last dozen years, is relieved his personal odyssey

is over. He had consulted seven specialists, and many concluded it was a rare

allergy. Each morning when he awoke in his house, he would have upper

gastrointestinal tract pains that lasted all morning.

in has been back home for a few weeks and says he feels much better. " I can

go in the basement and start my woodworking and shining and polishing my rocks, "

he said.

The cost of the investigation and cleanup was about $20,000 and covered a slew

of environmental tests, dehumidifiers, and eventually the mold remediation. Half

was reimbursed by his insurance company.

In fact, it was in's insurance adjustor who spotted the mold.

Workers spent a week tearing down the wallboard and insulation and scrubbing the

cinderblock with a mold detergent. Finally, the walls were water-proofed, and

the ducts were sanitized.

Many people mistakenly think that all they have to do is use bleach to kill

mold, said Cucinotta, whose company, First Choice Environmental L.L.C. in

Cherry Hill, handled the project. But detergent is needed to kill 100 percent of

the mold.

Finding mold can involve a good bit of detective work, said Cucinotta, who

usually spends hours hunting for it.

" In closets where the walls weren't Sheetrocked, we used cameras " to find the

black mold that plastered a 10- by 15-foot section of in's front basement

wall, he said. He also found troublesome white powdery mold on the joists. He

inspected the crawl space and identified the problem: downspouts that were not

diverting water away from the home.

in's earlier consultants did not find mycotoxins, or mold byproduct, because

they are airborne and scattered throughout an area, said Cucinotta, who has been

in the business 42 years.

" People should just locate the source - the mold - and not bother with all the

testing, " he said.

in's wife, Jane, a paralegal, is thrilled the ordeal is over, she said. From

the beginning, she had suspected mold but was continually told that it was

something else. She purchased bottled water, replaced a refrigerator that she

suspected did not keep the food cold enough, installed new carpets, and

fastidiously cleaned the basement.

" Thank God, I feel vindicated, " she told the insurance adjustor when he informed

her of the findings.

Her advice for other people worried an illness might be linked to something in

their home? " If you have a nondescript medical problem that you can't put your

finger on, start with a list - and it can be a very long list, " she said. " Then

start eliminating things. "

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Information from: The Philadelphia Inquirer, http://www.philly.com