Dungannon man fears for family’s health due to black mould

A DUNGANNON man says he is becoming increasingly concerned for his family’s health and wellbeing due an increasing amount of black mould in their home.

Gregory Mullan, of the Cloneen area, has lived in two houses in the area in the last 12 years, both of which, he claims, have been affected by burgeoning mould on the walls.

“It’s getting worse,” says the Dungannon man, who is increasingly concerned for both his and his family’s wellbeing.

‘RISK’

“It’s a risk to the children, especially having heard about cases of Strep A recently. My daughter’s bedroom has been affected particularly bad, and some clothing has been destroyed because of it.”

Mr Mullan says that, after contacting Clanmil Housing Association, who are responsible for his home, they sent someone out to ‘paint over’ the increasingly damp areas of the walls with ‘damp proof’ paint.

“The damp proof paint hasn’t worked at all; specifically in my own bedroom, and they have since tried to claim that the issue is condensation. I have been intending to decorate the house for quite some time now, but as long as this issue continues, it’s pointless.”

Mr Mullan suggests that issues with the property’s insulation may be the root of the cause, noticing that, upon inspection, the insulation seemed to have ‘slipped out of place’, allowing for the mould to ravage the walls in both properties where he has lived.

The ‘Herald got in touch with Clanmil Housing Association regarding the family’s situation and received the following response.

VISIT

“Our Response Assets Officer and Neighbourhood Services Officer both visited the home on Monday (January 16). They did not find any structural defects in the house that could cause damp or excess condensation. They showed the tenant that a damp metre was indicating that there was no penetrating damp, and noted that the areas where condensation has occurred are small.

“As well as inspecting the house, the response assets officer and neighbourhood services officer, showed the tenant how to use the ventilation available, and explained the actions that can be taken to prevent a build-up of moisture and condensation.

“We had previously treated the areas of condensation build-up in the house in early 2022, and advised the tenant at that time on how to manage condensation build-up, including wiping down surfaces regularly. We also again explained this in December 2022.

“We have advised the tenant that any issues can be reported directly to our repairs desk. On this occasion, no repair request had been made by the tenant.”

FOLLOW-UP

“We will carry out a follow-up visit in the next two weeks to evaluate progress.”

Statistics from 2021 show that over 12 million households in the UK experienced damp issues, with 227,646 of those incidents reported in the North.

Occupants of damp or mouldy buildings are at an increased risk of experiencing health problems such as respiratory symptoms, respiratory infections, allergic rhinitis, and asthma.

Some people are more sensitive to mould than others, and some groups are especially vulnerable.