Two former residents of Family Housing’s Spencer View Apartment complex are suing the University for failing to prevent toxic mold from growing in the exterior wall of their apartment.
Masi Heamish, Maria Fabian-Alvizo and their daughter, Trinidad Fabian-Alvizo, developed chronic illnesses in spring 2005 after water infiltrated the apartment’s bedroom wall through a crack in the exterior of the apartment, causing aspergillus/penicillium mold spores to infiltrate the wall, according to court documents.
Mold spores were released into the apartment and testing later found the amount of spores to be more than “1200 times the outdoor control concentration levels,” a condition which “rendered areas of the apartment uninhabitable,” according to the documents.
The family moved out of the apartment and continued to suffer from various chronic “injuries,” including rashes, body aches and various respiratory problems.
Court documents allege that the University failed to “maintain the premises in a habitable condition” by neglecting to keep the exterior wall in “good order and repair,” control
moisture and keep the “living spaces free of unhealthy levels of mold contamination.”
The family is asking for $175,000 in damages to cover the medical and emotional damages they suffered and continue to suffer as a result of the mold in their apartment. This amount also includes economic damages from the cost of cleaning the apartment, moving costs, “past and future medical expenses” and attorney fees for Trinidad Fabian-Alvizo. Because Trinidad continues to suffer from chronic illness, the lawsuit asks for the right to amend their monetary compensation to “conform to the evidence,” according to the documents.