Cleveland Couple Besieged by Toxic Mold

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NewsNet5

Monday February 25 06:56 PM EST

Dangerous Mold Keeps Local Family Under Siege

Refrigerator mold is not the kind that causes alarm.

But when moisture accumulates in buildings, mold grows indoors.

NewsChannel5's Jodi reported that it's this suspected growth that has

a local family under siege.

Newlyweds Mike Pullin and Tracey Mueller-Pullin found the perfect home with

enough bedrooms for them and Tracey's two children.

But the family had no idea what had moved in before them.

What was their doctor's advice?

" Get out, get out as soon as possible, " Mueller-Pullin said.

" (Tracey) had started vomiting, " Pullin said. " (We took a) couple trips to

the emergency room (and got a) couple head scans, (but doctors) couldn't

find (anything). "

Mueller-Pullin was having headaches and breathing problems, Pullin was

having tremors, and the children were constantly having sore throats and

colds.

What was going on? The only environmental change for the family was a new

home.

" My family doctor ordered some tests done on the house, which we sent to

Youngstown, and they came back two pencillions and one aspergillous, " Pullin

said.

Two species of mold were growing in the basement -- behind wooden panels and

underneath floorboards -- in the back room along the wall, and in the

bedroom underneath the carpet.

But what can't be confirmed is whether the mold causes health problems.

" What we don't really understand yet is the more subtle exposure you have

from breathing the air in a contaminated home or building, what those health

impacts are, " said Dr. Dorr Dearborn of University Hospitals.

Dearborn, the leading national medical mold expert, said that for mold to be

a problem, there has to be constant exposure to water.

" If it's there, if it's damp or wet for more than 48 hours, by definition of

public health standards, it's mold-contaminated and should be discarded, "

Dearborn said.

It appears that the cause of the mold at the Pullin home and possibly water

damage was from two fires. Fire reports from 1988 and 1999 showed fires in

the bedroom and years later in the back room's fireplace. The Pullins said

that they never knew this.

" Nobody understands mold, " Pullin said. " What's that? You think like I

did -- bread. You want to see it? Come to the house. "

The family's vents are now sealed with plastic.

The back bedrooms and the basement are boarded up with plywood and duck

tape.

The family of four is sleeping in the living room on air mattresses, trying

to figure out what they can afford to do next.

The issue of mold in homes has moved into the courtrooms. In Florida and

Texas, juries awarded homeowners millions of dollars for property damage and

mental anguish.

If you have a suspected problem, contact your local health department.

You can learn more about toxic mold by calling University Hospitals at (216)

443-7500 or visiting this Web site.