Mold may be growing health risk

Tenants at a Whittier Avenue apartment complex are facing a problem

that is becoming increasingly common throughout Southern California

and other parts of the nation: worries that mold is endangering their

health.

In the case of the Camden Sea Palms complex, there are different

opinions regarding the source of the mold -- a black fungus that can

be seen around windows at the complex -- and whether there will be

any lingering effects.

Some tenants are not satisfied with the repair efforts that have

been made at the complex, which is owned by Houston-based Camden

Property Trust.

Contacted during an apartment inspection Thursday, Colin A. Smith

Jr., Camden’s regional director of facilities management, said,

property owners are “moving forward [with repairs], but I can’t tell

you much more than that.”

Smith attributed the mold to high humidity around the apartment

complex.

Smith’s explanation differs from that of V. Anthony Thompson, who

was hired by Camden resident Deverick Mack to evaluate Mack’s

apartment. Thompson, of the Marina del Rey-based firm Infrastructure

Risk Management, wrote in a Jan. 31 letter to Camden that water

leaked into the apartment through the roof and caused mold to grow

inside.

A later report, completed by Orange-based California Roof Savers,

concluded that roofing materials above Mack’s apartment were damaged.

The report, dated Feb. 17, said that damage to roofing materials

designed to direct rainwater to drains was “the obvious source of

leaking.” The report concluded that immediate replacement of the

roofing materials was necessary.

Smith said Thursday that he has not seen California Roof Savers’

report and has not personally inspected the roof. He also believes

Camden Sea Palms residents face no health risks because of the mold.

But Camden tenant Sandra Escolero isn’t so sure. Speaking through

an interpreter, Escolero said her 12-year-old son, Rene, developed

breathing problems soon after workers who were making repairs removed

a wall from a closet. The boy has a prescription dated July 6 for

Flonase, a nasal spray, and said he has difficulty breathing without

medication.

“It’s hard. I can’t breathe through my nose,” Rene said.

Rene was also prescribed hydrocortisone cream for treatment of

what his mother said appear to be tiny bites on his legs. Escolero

said her son did not have any bites until her closet wall was removed

to make mold-related repairs.

Escolero thinks mold is a problem throughout her apartment. She

pointed out black spots, which appeared to be mold around her

windows, and moist carpeting in her bedroom closet. The carpet on her

closet floor had a musty odor.

In Thompson’s view, simply living in the complex could pose a

health risk.

“Everybody needs to be moved out; mold testing needs to be done,”

he said.

Thompson’s opinion is one shared more and more by homeowners and

renters across the country in recent years, especially as lawsuits

citing health problems -- including one involving TV personality Ed

McMahon -- make news. Last year, a federal panel linked mold to

respiratory problems and called it a public health problem.

Back in 2001, California passed legislation that required

homeowners to disclose to prospective buyers any incidence of mold.

Camden resident Alex Naidovich is another who believes repair work

has not eliminated mold at his apartment. Naidovich described a

repair attempt as a “make-up job” and said he cannot store fruit in

his apartment without it becoming quickly covered with fungus.

“If it’s left out on the counter one day -- just one day -- it’s

all green,” Naidovich said.

In early July, a letter signed by Steve Manny, Camden’s district

manager, advised the complex’s residents that mold and mildew could

be cleaned with a 10% bleach and water solution.

Mack moved out of his apartment in mid-January after he and his

wife woke up with rashes, breathing trouble and bloody noses, he

said.

Since then, he says, he has spent thousands of dollars in hotel

bills and rent for an apartment he believes puts his health at risk.

What Camden residents want, Mack said, is for the property owners

to conduct thorough mold tests and tell tenants the results, in

addition to fixing the problem.

“We would like them to remediate the place properly based on

testing,” Mack said. “I think we would like Camden to live up to

their motto of providing living excellence.”

The Orange County Health Care Agency has inspected Mack’s

apartment.

Though Mack is dissatisfied with repairs, health care agency

spokeswoman Pat Markley said health inspectors believe the mold

problem in his apartment has been solved.

“The mold that we observed is no longer there,” Markley said

Tuesday.

Markley said inspectors have not received complaints from other

Camden residents and would need tenants’ permission to inspect any

other apartments that may have a mold problem.

Renters who suspect mold problems should call the agency’s

Environmental Health Division at (714) 433-6000.