Storm delays toxic mold cleanup at county Health Department

[Guest guest]

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/news/story/07242002_new08.asp

Storm delays mold cleanup

By JUSTIN POST Tribune Chronicle

WARREN - A torrential downpour Tuesday morning flooded the basement of the

county Health Department, delaying the start of work to clean up toxic mold.

Crews managed to scrub down equipment in the basement before quitting

Tuesday. ''Today, we are just going to set up because we can't run our

sweepers in all this water,'' said Greg Morocco of Aberdeen Construction and

Restoration. ''We are coming back with drying equipment and will probably

pick up with cleaning the contents tomorrow.''

Health Department offices at 176 Chestnut Ave. N.E. contain toxic mold.

Workers must set up negative air rooms and scrub down equipment before it

can be moved to buildings where employees have been relocated.

Three workers from Aberdeen will suit up today in full-body protective garb

and oxygen masks to do the work. Morocco said the job is a little different

than most, as there is a lot of paperwork and each document must be

individually wiped down with a damp cloth before it leaves the building. The

work will take at least a week, he said.

''All the paperwork, computers ... everything has to be cleaned,'' he said.

High-efficiency vacuums are used for the first phase of cleaning, after

which a solution of water, dish detergent and bleach is used to wipe down

the equipment before the vacuums are used a second time. The contents are

then moved into a negative air room away from the toxic spores.

In May, a form of toxic mold, Stachybotrys, was found in the basement office

of Emergency Management Agency Director Beil, forcing the area to be

sealed.

Two full-time employees and four part-time employees have been moved to the

Trumbull County 911 Center in Howland. Since then, Beil says her department

has struggled to perform everyday operations, as its equipment is still

located in the Warren basement.

For instance, fire officials contacted Beil's department recently asking for

a bulldozer to help fight a fire in Greene Township, but workers couldn't

access their resource booklet because it was locked away in the contaminated

basement.

''Luckily, I had my planner at home with the number in it,'' Beil said. ''I

don't, however, have everyone on a business card at home.''

When the Emergency Management Department was told two months ago to

relocate, workers didn't expect to be in limbo for months, she said.

''They said it would be about two weeks and it has been two months now,''

Beil said.

The 911 center, she added, just doesn't meet the department's needs.

''We have one computer and are sharing a printer with the people at the 911

center,'' Beil said. ''We had grant deadlines that we had to call the state

and get extension on because of our limited resources.''

On July 17, the Emergency Management Executive Board asked commissioners to

relocate the department to a Panther Avenue building being used by Trumbull

County Drug Task Force, which is expected to be moving soon.

Commissioners made a decision, which Commissioner O'Brien said will

be announced in coming weeks.

The Health Department is being moved to space in the county's Education

Department in the Wean Building, O'Brien said.

''It is musical chairs right now, and the music hasn't stopped, so we all

have plenty of chairs to sit in,'' O'Brien said.

In the meantime, the Emergency Management equipment - computers, desks,

filing cabinets and files - will be put in storage, Beil said.

Commissioners hired Aberdeen last week for $11,000, O'Brien said. Estimated

costs to eradicate the mold are about $65,000.

240 lin St. S.E. | Warren, Ohio 44482

330.841.1600 (local) | 888.550.TRIB (toll-free)