Need IAQ Expert Witness for ADA Lawsuit

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I have been following the sickbuilding list postings for several years and

thank all who contribute. I need some help and maybe, through the responses

of list members others will b e helped as well

After working for four years in a very old, and very sick building I

developed occupational asthma, fibromyalgia and multiple chemical

sensitivities. Sound familiar? Yes, you guessed it. The employer, the City

of Norfolk, in Virginia, has refused to acknowledge that the 95 year old

rennovated building had problems despite leaky roofs for years, standing

water in the basement, IAQ tests showing mold, and major dust problems.

Demolition dust from the demotion of nearby buildings was routinely sucked

in to the building through the fresh air intake. The on-site rock crushing

activities sent up clouds of dust for months at a time, but the maintenance

and cleaning was haphazard to say the least.

I developed fibromyalgia, then sensitivity to many chemicals and finally

occupational asthma. After a severe asthma attack I left the building and

was found in the employee parking lot passed out. While awaiting the

paramedics I stopped breathing. Asthma has been confirmed by testing and by

both an allergist and a pulmonologist. A rheumatologist follows me for the

fibromyalgia but he is adamant that environmental factors are not involved.

And neither the rheumatologist nor the allergist " believe " in multiple

chemical sensitivities. Nor did an environmental doctor at s Hopkins

Environmental and Occupational Health Dept. Virginia's medical community

is very conservative.

Well, the soap opera goes on. I refused to go back into this very old, very

sick building and requested accommodations under the Americans with

Disabilities Act. Two previous requests had been ignored. I am a business

planner and was working for the city's utilities department which had

multiple building sites. I was moved to a six year old, clean building and

did well for 10 months. Yes, I still had asthma and fibromyalgia, but I

could breathe. Then the City moved me again into a brand new building,

complete with new building materials and a heating, ventilation and air

conditioning system (HVAC) that worked only intermittently. Bloody noses,

asthma attacks, major flare up of fibromyalgia. I got very, very sick. But

my doctors insist that I should be able to work, with accommodations. They

don't seem too concerned that my health is going downhill and that I am

getting more and more sensitive.

I requested accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Again. The City of Norfolk " tested " this brand new building using a

screening test kit and selecting only two sites to cover an entire open air

floor plan of thousands of feet. The City has manipulated the testing

procedures, testing conditions and misinterpreted testing results in the

past. No outside IAQ expert was called in to do the test. The results

showed moderate levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) near the copy

machine (where they wanted to locate me), but the City tells everyone that

the results were not significant to affect a normal population.

During the first six months of operation, the HVAC remote monitoring

system wasa not operational (not even instatlled) and no one was trained to

operate or maintain the HVAC system.

So here I am, having filed an EEOC complaint, finally getting a " right to

sue " letter and after months of looking found a lawyer to take on an ADA

lawsuit. We have to find an IAQ expert who can address the three building:

one moldy/dusty one, the " safe one " and finally the brand new building with

its off-gassing. Someone who can see through the IAQ smoke screen put up by

the City. Meanwhile, the City of Norfolk is trying to squelch all testimony

about the original 95 year old sick building, since many employees have

been made sick, but fearing for their jobs, remain silent.

Armour has declined to act as an expert witness, advising us to find

someone versed in multiple chemical sensitivity. However, Virginia courts

do not recognize MCS as a valid illness, and certainly not a disability.

Can someone help me find an expert witness to address the issue of

ever-increasing respiratory sensitivity after prolonged exposure to mold

and dust?

I can be reach at 757-547-8514 or by email at abbysmith3@....