In September, a fire in a Toronto Community Housing Corporation building left nearly 1,7000 tenants displaced until the building could be declared safe enough for them to return. Almost one month later, not all of the residents have yet been allowed back into their homes.  

The aftermath of a serious fire can be heartbreaking for homeowners who still have to find the time to make temporary living arrangements, sort out insurance paperwork and make records of what was damaged and what is salvageable.

 One aspect of the aftermath of a serious fire that is not often thought of is the possibility of mold due to of water damage.   In the case of many fires, water used to extinguish the fire is the cause of much, if not most of the damage. In the Toronto Community Housing fire, the amount of water used by the 27 fire trucks could fill almost eight Olympic-sized swimming pools. This means that flooring, carpets and drywall throughout that side of the building may have been soaked, causing the same water damage that allows mold to grow so easily.  

In these situations, extensive repairs will have to be completed to ensure that no water damage remains and affected areas must be cut out completely and replaced. Hopefully, the job is done correctly the first time and those who are being allowed to return home bit by bit will be able to move on without any worries of future mold growth. 

If you have been affected by a fire or other traumatic event that results in severe water damage such as a large flood, a mold inspection is your best bet. Catching the problem early can ensure that repairs are done before the mold becomes a serious health hazard for you and your family.

Mold Inspections in Ajax, Barrie, Beaverton, Bowmanville, Bracebridge, Brantford, Burlington, Caledon, Cambridge, Cobourg, Collingwood, Georgetown Guelph, Hamilton, Keswick, Kitchener, Lindsay, London , Markham, Milton, Mississauga, Muskoka, Newmarket, Niagara Falls, North York, Oakville, Orangeville, Oshawa, Owen Sound, Peterborough, Pickering, Port Carling, Port Hope, Richmond Hill, Severn Bridge, Sarnia , Simcoe, Southwest Ontario , St Catharines, Thornhill, Toronto, Waterdown, Waterloo, Whitby and Windsor Ontario.

A schoolteacher in Scarborough, Maine, had to quit her job of four years after developing chronic health issues related to mold exposure. The teacher is now extremely sensitive to airborne irritants, which is a common occurrence when people are exposed to mold for lengthy periods of time.

Prior to taking the job at the intermediate school, the teacher had no health issues other than a mild cat allergy. Four years later, she has developed breathing issues, chronic post-nasal drip and prolonged, frequent colds that worsen year after year.

From the start, her classroom had visible mold growing on the carpet because of prior water damage. While after reporting the problem to school administrators she was able to have a patch of the mold-infested carpet removed, the initial water damage issues weren’t resolved and the mold continued to grow. Later on, she found out that another teacher who had worked in the same room had asked to be moved because of the poor air quality, and one more teacher had suffered a severe asthma attack because of the mold. Mold testing revealed the mold in the classroom was Apsergillus, a genus which includes many toxic and allergy-irritating molds.

Only a professional mold inspection that includes laboratory testing can determine mold species, and according to the World Health Organization, no level of Apsergillus found indoors is acceptable. The school is fighting back, saying that one super-sensitive person can’t dictate school-wide mold inspections. What the school fails to realize is that continued mold exposure is what actually leads to people becoming super-sensitive to allergens, and it can end up seriously affecting the health of other teachers and even students.

Should you suspect mold in your home or workplace, contact MoldInspections.ca today for a friendly and pressure-free phone or on-site consultation at 416.575.6111. We can help.

Workplace and Residential Mold Removal Contractors serving Toronto, Acton, Ajax, Barrie, Brampton, Brantford, Cambridge, Etobicoke, Georgetown, Halton Hills, Kitchener, Markham, Milton, Mississauga, North York, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Peel Region, Scarborough, Thornhill, Vaughan, Waterloo, Whitby, York Region Ontario.