Gearing up with pumps, fans and tarps could save you thousands of dollars in preventable damage. Those tools help keep water out and your home dry. Plus, continuous rain means you need to constantly check your home from top to bottom after each downpour.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (FOX 35 ORLANDO) — It’s been nearly two years since Hurricane Irma, nearly three years since Hurricane Matthew, but the effects of both are still proving devastating at a historic Daytona Beach church.
The Mount Bethel Baptist Institutional Church was severely damaged during the two recent hurricanes, one ripping a large hole in the nearly 100-year-old building’s roof.
According to church leaders, it wasn’t the hole that proved most damaging, but what got in the hole: A lot of rain.
«The water came pouring in like you turned on the faucet,” said church Deacon Andrew Moore. It flooded into both floors of the towering, mid-town church.
The water soaked into the carpets, the walls, the furniture, and after trying to continue on in the building it quickly became clear to church leaders that the damage was far worse than they imagined.
«It’s all been impacted by mold and mildew,” said Moore, pointing around the now gutted fellowship hall. “That’s why we stripped everything down to the bare core. The sheet rock here has been taken down, all back here has been taken out, all the carpet is gone.»
Crews have stripped most of the church’s lower level down to the boards.
In the upper level, where congregations have worshiped for decades, the carpet is gone.
Fixtures and furniture have been removed, and about all that remains are the original choir chairs on the stage and the stained glass windows lining the walls.
Moore said emergency funds and insurance were scarce, leaving the church to look elsewhere to cover repair costs.
Along with a sizeable loan, he said they’ve sold other buildings they owned and received significant donations from their devoted members.
«We’re at probably $750,000 at this point,” Moore said.
Still though, he estimates about $250,000 in work remains, including $125,000 for the fellowship hall alone.
So, church leaders are reaching out to the rest of the community and asking for help to save the building that they say isn’t just a part of their history, but a part of Central Florida’s.
According to the church, they were founded in 1885 in their small Daytona neighborhood by a group of black Christians with no place to worship.
The current church was built in 1921 and was the church for several influential African American members of the community, including the city’s first black mayor.
«The oldest black church in Daytona Beach. All of the black Baptist churches came out of this church, a glorious history,” Moore said.
Church leaders are confident that it’s not a matter of if the church will reopen, but when.
For now, their members worship up the street at a neighboring church, but they say with a little help that historic place of worship will once again return to its glory.
The church is asking anyone who wants to donate to contact them directly at 386-255-6475, or at 700 S. Martin Luther King Boulevard, Daytona Beach, FL. 32114.
An investigation into mold exposures after Hurricane Harvey demonstrated that immunosuppressed adult residents were exposed to mold and water-damaged areas and many did not wear respiratory protection equipment or other personal protective equipment (PPE), according to a report published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
Researchers conducted interviews with a convenience sample of residents from 3 hospital systems in the metropolitan area of Houston, Texas, where hospital-wide recommendations about avoiding mold exposure had not been disseminated before Hurricane Harvey. Using a modified questionnaire developed by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, researchers conducted telephone interviews between October 21, 2017, and November 8, 2017, of 103 persons who had immunosuppression and who had stayed in the Houston metropolitan area during or after Hurricane Harvey.
Of the 102 participants, 92 reported living in their homes at the time of the interview. Water was reported in the homes of 46 of participants; 37 of these participants reported a median of 3 inches of water in the first floor of their homes for a median of 3 days, and 28 of these 37 participants reported that they had either seen or smelled mold in their homes. Thirty-two homes were cleaned for water damage/mold, 17 participants reported living in the house during cleanup, and 17 participants performed the cleanup themselves.
Participation in cleanup activities was assessed with cleanup categorized as either heavy (removing furniture, drywall, or carpeting) or light (sweeping, wiping off counters or walls, or retrieving personal items).
Overall, 49% (n=50) engaged in any type of cleanup activity, including 23 who engaged in heavy cleanup activities (median of 7 days) and 27 who engaged in light cleanup activities (median of 4 days). Of the 23 people who engaged in heavy cleanup, 57% reported not wearing respiratory protection, and 87% reported not wearing any PPE. Similarly, of the 27 people who engaged in light cleanup, 85% reported not wearing respiratory protection. The most frequently used PPE were gloves. In addition, although a total of 40 of these 50 participants reported wearing any PPE, only 7 participants reported wearing a mask at all times.
Although federal agencies currently recommend that immunosuppressed persons avoid flooded and mold-contaminated buildings because of a high risk for invasive mold infections, the findings from this study “might help prompt future studies on the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of [PPE] use among immunosuppressed persons in post-hurricane settings and other locations experiencing flooding when complete avoidance of mold-contaminated sites is difficult,” concluded the study authors.
Disclosures: Luis Ostrosky-Zeichner, MD, reports grants and/or personal fees from Astellas, Merck & Co., Pfizer, Cidara, Scynexis, F2G, Amplyx, Mayne, Gilead, NovaDigm, United Medical, and Stendhal outside the submitted work. Dimitrios P. Kontoyiannis, MD, reports honoraria for lectures from Merck & Co., Gilead, and United Medicine. He also reports consulting fees from Merck & Co., Astellas, Cidara, Amplyx, and Mayne.
Reference
Chow NA, Toda M, Pennington AF, et al. Hurricane-associated mold exposures among patients at risk for invasive mold infections after Hurricane Harvey – Houston, Texas, 2017. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2019;68(21):469-473.
When it comes to preventing mold damage in Palm Beach Gardens and Wellington, Florida, Best Restoration Inc is the ultimate address.
This press release was orginally distributed by ReleaseWire
Boynton Beach, FL — (ReleaseWire) — 06/21/2019 — Mold is one of the silent problems that insidiously affect the structure of the home and property. It is found indoors or outdoors in dark or light colored patches on walls, ceilings, and floors, and a dumpy musty odor usually accompanies it.
According to experts, there are a variety of factors that lead to mold growth. Usually, it takes over in dark places and areas where there is moisture, which may be caused by leaks and cracks in the plumbing system or water seepage from an outside source. It is also encouraged by high levels of humidity and water condensation. Heavy rains also contribute to the growth of mold, which can cause potential mold damage in Palm Beach Gardens and Wellington, Florida.
If the taken care of immediately, it can spread throughout the structure of the building, thereby posing potential threats to one’s health. The indoor air quality gets profoundly affected by mold spores that usually contaminate the air.
Best Restoration, Inc is a full-service company serving Boynton Beach and surrounding Palm Beach and Broward Counties. The certified experts take pride for their ability and commitment to solving mold, water, and indoor air quality problems with ease and confidence.
With years of experience in the industry, they can use the latest technology with time tested procedures to remove mold from the property safely. They also restore the home to a healthy habitable environment.
By availing their service, one can prevent the mildew and mold from jeopardizing their health and the structural integrity of the home and business. The entire mold removal process is carried out with utmost precision and care. While removing the mold, they identify the cause or root of the moisture problem and leak and fix it up then and there. If any plumbing system is out of commission for long, they make sure that the functionality of the system is restored.
For more information on remodeling in Boynton Beach and Palm Beach, Florida, visit https://floridamoldcleaning.com/what-we-do/remodeling-services/.
About Best Restorations, Inc.
Best Restorations, Inc. is a full service company offering its services to the people of Palm Beach Gardens, Wellington, Palm Beach, as well as its neighboring areas.
For more information on this press release visit: http://www.releasewire.com/press-releases/best-restoration-inc-offers-unmatched-solutions-for-mold-damage-in-palm-beach-gardens-and-wellington-florida-1234893.htm
Many homeowners are in the dark when it comes to what is and isn’t covered in their homeowners insurance policy. A recent survey by insuranceQuotes.com attempts to shed some light on what homeowners should know when it comes to their homeowners insurance policy, including flood insurance.
According to insuranceQuotes.com’s survey, flood and mold damage are among the most common misconceptions when it comes to homeowner’s insurance. The survey revealed that 35% of Americans incorrectly believe that a standard homeowner’s insurance policy covers flood damage, and 34% incorrectly believe that a standard homeowner’s insurance policy covers mold damage. These homeowners may be unaware that flood insurance is a premium provided through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), rather than an included feature in their homeowner’s insurance. In general, a homeowner flood insurance policy covers up to $250,000 in structural damage and up to $100,000 in content loss. However, some homeowners may not be aware of what a “flood” actually means.
“Many consumers, when discussing or describing a loss, think that the words ‘flood’ and ‘water damage’ are interchangeable and mean the same thing,” says Mark Carrasquillo, an agent with the New York City-based brokerage E.G. Bowman Company on insuranceQuotes.com. “This is entirely wrong. In the insurance world the terms are very different.”
According to the NFIP, a flood is “a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of two or more acres of normally dry land area or of two or more properties (at least one of which is your property) from overflow of inland or tidal waters, from unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source, or from mudflow.”
Additionally, homeowners need to be aware of what parts of their house are covered by the NFIP. For example, Frank Darras, a national consumer litigation lawyer, told insuranceQuotes.com that the only items covered in your basement are structural elements and essential equipment, which include electrical and HVAC systems.
The NFIP’s availability to homeowners may improve in coming months, especially for those impacted by natural disasters. Recently, the House Financial Services Committee unanimously approved two bills to reform and reauthorize the NFIP. H.R. 3111 would bring improvements to the NFIP appeals process, accountability, and transparency of claims process in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, and H.R. 3167 would reauthorize the NFIP for five years and includes numerous reforms to increase affordability, mapping and modernization.
source https://dsnews.com/daily-dose/06-21-2019/addressing-homeowner-flood-insurance-misconceptions
The year is 2019, and the Midwest (and some of the entire eastern half of the country as well) have been experiencing flooding that is almost as great as the big floods that nearly devoured the Midwest in 1993 known as “The Great Flood”. That being said, there have been numerous homes, yours possibly being one of them, that has been heavily impacted with water damage due to the flood waters.
No matter how small the damage is, water damage is one of the largest culprits of mold, which can cause numerous problems, from respiratory all the way to immune system issues. Mold also breaks down the integrity of your home’s construction and can even allow more bacteria to grow that can cause other serious issues. When your home is damaged by flood waters, you literally have less than a week to work with when cleaning up and this is why you should worry about mold.
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It greatly depends, but if you have a lot of water with electrical circuitry, wiring, and other things that can possibly be affected or touching the water damage, you need to hire professional emergency workers help get things secure so you don’t have to risk your life to clean it up. If your home has a high volume of water in it, you want to more than likely hire a professional service.
If you just had a little bit of seepage around the doors and floors, then that is something you can possibly clean up yourself, but you’ll also need to buy the equipment to do the DIY repairs and moisture removal. Also, beware sewage, because if your home was flooded with sewage, it’s going to make your home smell awful and it’s extremely hazardous to your health. Therefore, you must hire a professional to help you rid your home of the water, the damage, and the mold.
Start here – www.sandiegowaterdamagesd.com Book Now.
You really only have a few days after the power has been off before mold can start growing. Even the EPA recommends having a professional mold removal contractor to clean up any mold that covers more than a 10 feet squared (or one hundred square feet, which isn’t very big). If it’s only in tiny areas, you’re one of the lucky few that can be lucky enough to wash the mold off yourself with soap and water.
When your home is water damaged, and you start the mold removal process, you want to be sure that you dehumidify your home as much as possible. If you’re not using a professional service which will use their industrial ones, you want to make sure you buy a few dehumidifiers yourself that have the strength to get rid of moisture twice the size of your room. This will ensure that you get everything as much as possible (and you’ll have to constantly check and clean them for mold as well).
House mold is not something that you want to play with. In children, black mold can cause all sorts of allergy symptoms and also skin rashes, inflammation, respiratory problems, and your child can have some serious side effects, and prolonged exposure to black mold spores can cause a lot of damage to their internal organs. When you have flood waters invade your home, you need to do everything you can to start the elimination of mold pronto, and don’t expect to prevent it, just be prepared to get rid of it when it happens, as its normally bound to happen.
OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — “It was a nice quiet neighborhood, that was part of the reason we liked it,” Chris Flesher, Paradise Lakes Homeowner said.
Nearly 200 families called Paradise Lakes home.
“We had a water view, nobody behind us,” Flesher said. “We had the lake right there, you could go fishing. Probably not the paradise everybody thinks, but it was a nice place to live.»
This Spring, every home in this neighborhood was flooded. Water reached windows on the main flood.
The City of Bellevue deemed the home in the neighborhood unsafe to live in due to structural damage, mold, and contamination from flood waters.
Tuesday, Bellevue City Council decided all homes must be demolished by July 30. The city will tear down remaining homes in August.
Thursday morning, Flesher and his family were the first to demolish their home. Watching the place they called home for just one year gives them some closure, he said.
“I’ve had a lot of sleepless nights worried about this not knowing what happening,” Flesher said. “It’s been broke into several times.”
He said he’s heard from some of his neighbors who would like to tear down their homes, but don’t have the money to do it.
“They used the FEMA money to move on with their lives, get other places to live, clothes, all that stuff,” Flesher said.
Chris Christensen “Sad, it makes me feel very sad for them,” Chris Christensen, Owner, Christensen Excavating said. “I look around here and its their homes, their personal belonging.”
Christensen said it costs several thousand dollars to demolish a home; and the owners are expected to foot the bill.
“There’s a lot of homes here,” Christensen said. “I don’t know who owns all of the houses, so it will be cutting it close (to the six week deadline.) The average house we can wreck in a day so we can wreck quite a few in a month and a half.”
Flesher isn’t sure what will come of his property in Paradise Lakes. He isn’t interested in rebuilding there. His family is hoping to buy their next paradise in a year.
source https://www.3newsnow.com/news/local-news/demolition-of-flood-damaged-homes-in-bellevue-begins
[unable to retrieve full-text content]What’s With The Black Stuff On The Jefferson Memorial Roof? WAMU 88.5
A mysterious substance has been growing on the monument’s dome for more than a decade. Here’s why it’s taking so long to clean.
source https://wamu.org/story/19/06/21/whats-with-the-black-stuff-on-the-jefferson-memorial-roof/
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (FOX 46 CHARLOTTE) — Another round of severe storms are pushing through the Charlotte area this evening. Less than two weeks after torrential downpours caused damaging floods along the Catawba River, neighbors are worried they could be in for an even bigger mess.
Residents of Riverside Drive are still trying to dry out from last week’s flash flooding.
«I just feel so sorry for them and it’s just been an awful experience and Duke Power don’t care,” flood victim Ritchie Lengel said.
Some of their homes are still unlivable after floodwaters last week destroyed dozens of them. Neighbor Susan Barbee says her home was seriously damaged. She’s thankful for the help she’s received from churches, friends and volunteers.
«I had to remove everything in the house,» said Susan Barbee. “Now that it’s done it it’s always in the back of your mind, is it going to do it again, but I don’t like to think about it.»
Minister Joe Brackett also owns a home along the devastated road. He along with his granddaughter worked to remove damaged drywall and belongings in an attempt to stop mold from growing in the walls, his hands were bleeding.
He was surprised when the floodwaters rose inside his home saying he lives in a raised section of the road where flooding isn’t usually a problem.
«Some of the folks have lost everything. I’ve see appliances, I’ve seen couches, chairs, just everything these folks had, vehicles,» Brackett said.
With more rain expected this week some neighbors said they aren’t concerned about flooding.
Ritchie Lingel was cleaning up outside of his lakefront home replacing the cover on his dock. The damage to his home is contained to the outside. He feels lucky that the rising water didn’t breach his front door but says he did lose his cat in the storm.
“I just feel so sorry for them and it’s just been an awful experience and Duke power don’t care,” he said.
Lingel said his only concern is Duke Power opening the dams without warning and letting too much water flow downstream.
“Unless Duke Power is going to do something stupid again but the problem is nobody hold Duke power responsible,” he said.
Many homes have been stripped down to the studs, many along the waterfront have bright red signs on the door that read: “Unsafe. Do not Enter or Occupy”. Some neighbors believe it will take months before they’re able to move back in.
“You just got to take it one day at a time and do what you can. You can’t look too far ahead. You don’t know what tomorrow is going to bring,” said Barbee.
Neighbors are asking for volunteers to help with the cleanup. According to Barbee there are residents who don’t have help and are unable to clean up their flooded homes alone. She said volunteers only need to bring a pair of gloves and leave their good clothes home.
Severe thunderstorm warnings were issued all over the area throughout the early evening, and neighborhoods have been left drenched by the rain.
Trees and power lines were reported down across Mecklenburg, Gaston, Cabarrus and Rowan counties. FOX 46’s Neighborhood Storm Watch team advises that the severe weather could last through the evening thanks to a cold front.
The passage of the front should give us a break in the weather for Friday, the FOX 46 Neighborhood Storm Watch team says, but showers and storms will return over the weekend. Temperatures and humidity will be typical of summertime in the upper 80s and low 90s.
Be sure to download the FOX 46 weather app to stay ahead of those showers and storms.
Water getting into your place of business can cause damage to the ceiling, walls and floors. Furthermore, your expensive equipment, furniture or products you sell could get caught in the cross hairs and be damaged or ruined. Lastly, when your insulation is soaked with water, it will not work as effectively, leading to higher energy bills.
source https://www.wtoc.com/2019/06/20/dont-put-off-roof-repairs/
Damage Mold 