Re: Judge Acree stands by previous court order in mold heari
Posted by Rem Dude on 5/15/08
It is ridiculous this has dragged on as long as it has.
Sounds like West Tennessee could use an IAQ professional or
two. Sad situation. RD On 5/15/08, LawMed195 wrote:
> Judge Acree stands by previous court order in mold hearing
> By Sabrina Bates, Chief Staff Writer, Jackson, TN
>
> After hearing nearly two days of testimony, 27th Judicial
> District Circuit Court Judge William Acree stood by his
> February order to have a local public high school
> remediated of mold.
> The judge determined on Tuesday during a temporary
> injunction hearing that the Weakley County Board of
> Education had acknowledged the presence of mold inside of
> Westview High School. He also said the Board planned
> to “fix” the problems, although a formal written plan had
> not yet been submitted to the court. The hearing was a
> request by Carol Hinman of Martin to cease operations at
> the school until the building was rid of what was
> considered by some to be “toxic mold.”
> Hinman has filed suit against the Weakley County Board of
> Education with claims that two of her children who
attended
> the Martin high school had suffered medical affects due to
> mold contamination inside the building.
> Acree ordered Jason Pannu, attorney for the school board,
> to submit a written plan describing steps that will be
used
> to remediate the public school.
> During testimony by Dr. Elliott Horner on Tuesday it was
> revealed that WHS did have water infiltration issues that
> led to high levels of moisture throughout the building.
> Horner also noted that he found “visible mold growth” in
> the building and had recommended the school be remediated.
> Hinman’s attorney Larry Parrish of Memphis asked Horner
why
> there was no remediation plan after the mycologist found
> mold growth inside the building last August.
> “I did discuss this with my client, Mr. Pannu. Those
> recommendations were passed on to him,” Horner replied.
> Horner never clarified throughout his testimony, how much
> mold a building can house before it becomes “excessive” or
> poses a health threat to its occupants. The mycologist,
who
> is employed through Air Quality Sciences of Georgia, was
> hired by Pannu to conduct a joint inspection of Westview
> High School for signs of mold growth last August. Dr.
> Richard Lipsey performed source sampling on behalf of the
> plaintiffs alongside Horner in August.
> According to Lipsey’s report, certain types of mold growth
> deemed to toxic in “excessive” amounts including
> Stachybotrys, Cladosporium and Aspergillus were found in
> areas of the high school.
> Acree ordered the Board of Education to begin
> immediate “temporary” remediation efforts at the school
> with permanent remedial measures to be taken by the Board
> during the students’ summer break. The circuit court judge
> heard testimony Monday and Tuesday that described the
> progress made on remediation efforts.
> Horner testified that at least one wing of the building
had
> been remediated while half of the HVAC system’s insulation
> covering the duct piping had been replaced. It was
> discovered during February’s hearing that the insulation
on
> the duct pipes had posed condensation issues, which in
turn
> lead to mold growth on ceiling tiles in areas throughout
> the school.
> Westview High School uses a chiller system to cool the
> building. Previous testimony cited the system had not
> properly functioned and dampers used to control fresh air
> intake had been disconnected.
> Acree stood by his order to have the entire HVAC system at
> the school inspected.
> Architectural consultant James Kavanagh testified on
Monday
> after an inspection of the building, engineering measures
> such as a regrading around the school building to
> open “weep holes” and gable replacement need to take place
> as long-term solutions to eliminate further water
> infiltration.
> In reference to the temporary injunction hearing for
Martin
> Middle School, Horner testified there was not enough
> evidence to determine if the building would require
further
> mold sampling to take place. He did advise general
> housekeeping issues have contributed to dust build-up
> inside the school and recommended a top to bottom thorough
> cleaning of MMS. After a clean-up, Horner said a visual
> inspection would be sufficient to determine if there is
> mold growth inside the middle school.
> Acree agreed to Horner’s recommendation.
> “We are very pleased. We are very happy with the judge’s
> recommendations. These steps are all good steps that are
> beneficial for all parties involved,” Amber Griffin, a
> member of the legal team for the Hinman family, commented
> after Acree’s ruling on Tuesday.
> Pannu said he would handle the written plan to present to
> the judge immediately. He added the Board would then take
> the proper steps through the Weakley County Commission to
> put out bids for the remedial work to take place this
> summer.
> Two families have sued the Board with claims their
children
> have become ill as a result of contact with mold
throughout
> Westview. Griffin said she would continue with the
> litigation through discovery. Both Hinman and the Joost
> family, who filed the first suit against Weakley County
> Superintendent of Schools Richard Barber, the Weakley
> County Board of Education and Weakley County as a
> government entity, are requesting jury trials for the
> pending litigation.WCP 5.15.08
>
> Amber Griffin, Attorney, Parrish & Shaw
> The Crescent Center, 6507 Poplar Ave Suite 420, Memphis,
> TN 38119
> Phone: (901) 767-8000, Fax: (901) 767-7618, Email:
> amber@parrishandshaw.com
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