Warning on mould health nightmare
A GEELONG dad is warning residents to be wary of the hidden dangers of mould, after a nightmare that saw three of his daughters taken to hospital.
Dale Smith’s Hamlyn Heights home was severely damaged in the Geelong floods in January, 2016.
He notified his insurance company and a “make-safe” remediation was conducted.
But five months later, his wife had developed shingles and three of his youngest daughters were battling respiratory issues.
Mr Smith is the owner and managing director of Geelong-based Scaada Group, which provides environmental and project management services, and is dad to four girls: Alahria, 21, Alyssia, 15, Sahirah, 13, and Avalina, 6.
His three youngest daughters had been struggling to breathe, and ended up in hospital at different times due to their respiratory issues.
Avalina, just nine months old at the time, spent two nights in hospital.
Mr Smith, his wife Colette and doctors discussed that mould could be causing the family’s health woes.
Mr Smith said subsequent testing uncovered “astronomical” levels of hidden mould infesting walls, underneath floors and ducted heating.
He said the experience was “horrible” and he felt “physically ill” about the findings.
“No wonder I had a child in hospital with pneumonia symptoms,” he said.
“The clean-up was done by a licensed mould remediation company, but we later found there was never any independent validation testing done to confirm the works had been done thoroughly and completely.
“Had a simple process of post-remediation mould testing been conducted, all of this was avoidable.”
Avalina has had ongoing respiratory issues, and the family moved out of the Hamlyn Heights home to Newtown due to the terrible memories.
“This scary, but true story, led me to guarantee my company would never let another family go through what we did,” Mr Smith said.
Since the experience, Scaada Group has expanded into the mould space, offering mould identification, testing, inspections and analysis, risk assessment and remediation.
Mr Smith urged people to use a reputable mould remediator whenever they commission works to be conducted, and said it was important to have an insurance provider who understood mould. He warned just because you can’t see mould, don’t assume it’s not present.
Barwon Health spokeswoman Kate Bibby said a mouldy home environment contributed to asthma, sensitivity to allergies, eczema and rhinitis, particularly in children.