[Mb-civic] The next menace: Mold - Boston Globe

[William Swiggard]

The next menace: Mold
What Katrina's wind and waters haven't claimed, fungi are now starting 
to devour

By Beth Daley, Globe Staff  |  September 12, 2005

When Hurricane Katrina's floodwaters poured into the Gulf Coast -- 
saturating walls, shoes, sofas, floors, and roofs -- billions of dormant 
mold spores woke up.

Now, fueled by moisture and temperature, those spores are growing furiously.

For the buildings left standing by the winds and waters; for the houses 
that escaped serious damage from the toxic soup of bacteria and 
chemicals still sloshing in Katrina's wake, the next plague coming, 
experts say, is mold.

''These are the most successful organisms on the Earth. . . . They have 
this amazing ability to [survive]," said Michael Rinaldi, director of 
the Fungus Testing Laboratory and professor of pathology and medicine at 
the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. ''Many of 
those houses are useless, they are going to have to be rebuilt."

Mold is a type of fungus that can weaken buildings, make people sick, 
and streak walls and baseboards with black and green discolorations that 
can be nearly impossible to scrub clean. While debate continues over how 
dangerous household molds may be, people with allergies, asthma, or 
weakened immune systems can suffer severe respiratory problems when they 
breathe in spores. Some fungal organisms feed on wood for their growth, 
leaving a gooey, structurally unsound beam behind.

Residents in hot and humid New Orleans have long lived with the creep of 
mold and fungus everywhere from bathrooms to barroom walls, keeping it 
at bay with dehumidifiers, air conditioners and bleach.

But day-to-day humidity levels -- as sweaty as they make people feel -- 
are not nearly as hospitable to mold growth, as the last two weeks have 
been. Moisture has crept into crevices of homes, schools, and businesses 
since Katrina struck the Gulf Coast on Aug. 29. Most air conditioners 
and dehumidifiers haven't been turned on since because of the lack of 
electricity. No one can reach the walls to coat them with bleach. And 
the mold has kept on multiplying.

http://www.boston.com/news/science/articles/2005/09/12/the_next_menace_mold/
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