Fire Department Mold

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Official calls Framingham firefighter's request 'ridiculous' September 9, 2010

Danielle Ameden 508-626-4416 Metrowest Daily News

FRAMINGHAM -- Firefighters are still upset about building conditions at the department's headquarters and have asked to live in trailers, a request which the town calls ridiculous.
Capital Buildings Project Manager Doug Goddard said Tuesday that it's "perfectly safe" for firefighters to live in the 14-year-old station, with contractors nearly finished correcting mold and air quality problems.
"We've been moving as fast as we could to get it done, and we've tried to expedite the project," Goddard said.
Firefighters called the Daily News on Tuesday and said they refused to go into the building and had moved into the equipment bay.
But firefighters at the station declined to comment, and union President Pete DeVito did not return calls Tuesday.
The firefighter's union yesterday again refused to comment on any actions it may have taken.
Goddard said the firefighters at Station 3 have asked to live in trailers, which he said "is ridiculous."
If the town bought trailers, "we won't have that money to work on the project," he said.
Fire Chief Gary Daugherty agreed with Goddard that the living quarters are safe.
"There's no reason for them not to be in there," he said Tuesday.
A Stoneham firm was brought in by the town to clean the building's air ducts. Separate firms have worked this week to balance the air entering and leaving the station and to seal an area where air leaked.
Goddard said officials discovered the leaking air coming from a hole about 2-by-2 feet wide over the side exit of the living quarters near the gable roof.
He said it appears that the hole was from the original construction.
Goddard said the company doing the air balancing, Regional Air Balancing of Norwood, will issue a report on the station's HVAC system, which he will review with the town's engineer for the project, New England Engineering of Framingham.
The town has worked unsuccessfully in the past to permanently eliminate mold at the headquarters on Loring Drive.
While the town says firefighters' safety was never in jeopardy, firefighter and Station 3 representative Andy Nardini said in July that crew members have sometimes woken up in the station with sore throats, bloody noses or headaches. He said mold may have been the culprit.
Town Meeting last year appropriated $70,000 for a comprehensive project that officials hope will solve the problem.
As part of the work, firefighters were upset earlier this summer when a contractor hired by the Fire Department left behind a layer of dust and debris when it removed carpet, furniture and ceiling tiles.
The Fire Department brought in another company to clean up and disinfect the area.

Framingham firefighters upset with mold cleaning efforts July 29, 2010

Danielle Ameden 508-626-4416 Metrowest Daily News

FRAMINGHAM -- Firefighters are unhappy with the work a cleanup crew performed while trying to get rid of mold at the Fire Headquarters on Loring Drive.
The town yesterday hired a separate firm to clean the building's air vents as part of a plan to permanently improve humidity.
Firefighters who work at Station 3 say the fix can't come soon enough.
"We live here," said Andy Nardini, a 13-year veteran and the station's union representative, complaining that the town has been slow to solve the problem. "We're allowed to live in a clean, healthy environment."
To help eliminate the mold, the Fire Department hired a local company that hauled the original carpet and some furniture out of the 14-year-old building and took down numerous 2-by-4-foot ceiling tiles on Tuesday.
Assistant Fire Chief John Magri said that the contractor, who was not named, left behind a layer of dust and debris in the living quarters that upset firefighters who arrived at work yesterday morning.
Union representatives voiced their concern at a morning meeting attended by Town Manager Julian Suso, Capital Buildings Project Manager Doug Goddard and Board of Health Director Ethan Mascoop.
As result of the meeting, the Fire Department brought in another company to clean up and disinfect the area in the Loring Drive station.
"We agreed that we need to be more stringent," said Magri, who called the firefighters' concerns "genuine."
Magri said 14 workers from Servicemaster by Gilmore Brothers were performing surface cleaning and sanitizing "to make the guys comfortable."
The on-duty firefighters temporarily lost their living quarters and hung out upstairs, outside and in the garage while waiting for calls.
Meanwhile, Goddard said he hired a Stoneham firm called Envirotech to clean the HVAC system's air ducts.
That work should start as soon as next Monday, Goddard said.
Once the ducts are cleaned, the town plans to close the dampers to keep hot, humid air outside.
An expert from the state Department of Public Health is set to visit the station today to inspect and make recommendations on sealing the building in order to improve indoor air quality.
Officials say the mold is not posing an imminent health threat, but firefighters who work and live at Station 3 are not convinced.
Nardini said crew members sometimes wake up in the station with sore throats, bloody noses or headaches, and he speculates it's from the mold. He said a senior firefighter transferred out of the station because of it.
"You leave the building," he said,"(and) within three, four hours, it's fine."

Framingham firefighters, chief frustrated with mold issue July 27, 2010

Danielle Ameden 508-626-4416 Metrowest Daily News

FRAMINGHAM -- As the town works on a fix, firefighters say they're frustrated and nervous about living with mold that continues to grow in the Loring Drive Fire Headquarters.
Mold that had been eliminated several years ago has come back because of humidity at the downtown station built in 1996, said Capital Buildings Project Manager Doug Goddard.
The town has hired air quality consultants and officials yesterday said they have a plan to permanently eliminate the health hazard.
"We've been working on the problem since I got here," said Chief Gary Daugherty, who started on the job last January and works in the building. He said the poor air quality poses no immediate safety concern.
"Everybody's working together to get it squared away," he said.
Goddard said the building's design and construction may be to blame for problems with the heating, ventilation and cooling system.
"One of the problems is there's too much outdoor air coming into the building," he said.
He said exterior air ducts are 10 times larger than they need to be. That could be because they were installed before the department had a separate vent for exhaust captured from trucks in the garage.
"The system is basically overdesigned for the building, according to what the engineer is saying," Daugherty said.
The abundance of air, and its dampness due to the humidity and summer heat, is causing more mold to grow, Goddard said.
It's also causing uneasiness.
"The guys are a little nervous," said firefighter Peter DeVito, president of the Framingham Firefighters Local 1652 union. "We're frustrated."
Daugherty said he understands.
"It's frustrating for everybody," Daugherty said. "It's frustrating for me, it's frustrating for the people who work here. It takes up a lot of our time that we could be spending on other issues."
The building has had problems "for quite a while," he said.
DeVito said air quality has improved under the new chief's watch but "it just seems like it's been taking forever."
Goddard said the town has hired a microbiologist, industrial hygienist and engineer using $70,000 that Town Meeting raised last year.
He said consultants came to a meeting last week attended by Town Manager Julian Suso, the chief and union representatives to discuss a solution.
The plan for a fix involves closing the outside air dampers - the flapping valve in the ducts - so there's less air coming in, Goddard said.
He said Daugherty can do that over the Internet using digital controls.
Before doing that, Goddard said the department wants to make sure the ducts are clean.
Officials worry the mold would become airborne if it's inside ducts that dry out, which would pose a real threat.
"We don't want to endanger anybody's health," he said.
The hard metal ducts will be scrubbed and disinfected, and accordion-like flexible ducts will be replaced because the insides are tough to reach.
"We'll review the situation" once that work is done and the dampers are closed, Goddard said.
He said additional humidity control devices might be necessary.
Goddard said he is now soliciting bids from contractors.

Official calls Framingham firefighter's request 'ridiculous'	September 9, 2010
Danielle Ameden 508-626-4416	Metrowest Daily News
FRAMINGHAM -- Firefighters are still upset about building conditions at the department's headquarters and have asked to live in trailers, a request which the town calls ridiculous. Capital Buildings Project Manager Doug Goddard said Tuesday that it's "perfectly safe" for firefighters to live in the 14-year-old station, with contractors nearly finished correcting mold and air quality problems. "We've been moving as fast as we could to get it done, and we've tried to expedite the project," Goddard said. Firefighters called the Daily News on Tuesday and said they refused to go into the building and had moved into the equipment bay. But firefighters at the station declined to comment, and union President Pete DeVito did not return calls Tuesday. The firefighter's union yesterday again refused to comment on any actions it may have taken. Goddard said the firefighters at Station 3 have asked to live in trailers, which he said "is ridiculous." If the town bought trailers, "we won't have that money to work on the project," he said. Fire Chief Gary Daugherty agreed with Goddard that the living quarters are safe. "There's no reason for them not to be in there," he said Tuesday. A Stoneham firm was brought in by the town to clean the building's air ducts. Separate firms have worked this week to balance the air entering and leaving the station and to seal an area where air leaked. Goddard said officials discovered the leaking air coming from a hole about 2-by-2 feet wide over the side exit of the living quarters near the gable roof. He said it appears that the hole was from the original construction. Goddard said the company doing the air balancing, Regional Air Balancing of Norwood, will issue a report on the station's HVAC system, which he will review with the town's engineer for the project, New England Engineering of Framingham. The town has worked unsuccessfully in the past to permanently eliminate mold at the headquarters on Loring Drive. While the town says firefighters' safety was never in jeopardy, firefighter and Station 3 representative Andy Nardini said in July that crew members have sometimes woken up in the station with sore throats, bloody noses or headaches. He said mold may have been the culprit. Town Meeting last year appropriated $70,000 for a comprehensive project that officials hope will solve the problem. As part of the work, firefighters were upset earlier this summer when a contractor hired by the Fire Department left behind a layer of dust and debris when it removed carpet, furniture and ceiling tiles. The Fire Department brought in another company to clean up and disinfect the area.
Framingham firefighters upset with mold cleaning efforts	July 29, 2010
Danielle Ameden 508-626-4416	Metrowest Daily News
FRAMINGHAM -- Firefighters are unhappy with the work a cleanup crew performed while trying to get rid of mold at the Fire Headquarters on Loring Drive. The town yesterday hired a separate firm to clean the building's air vents as part of a plan to permanently improve humidity. Firefighters who work at Station 3 say the fix can't come soon enough. "We live here," said Andy Nardini, a 13-year veteran and the station's union representative, complaining that the town has been slow to solve the problem. "We're allowed to live in a clean, healthy environment." To help eliminate the mold, the Fire Department hired a local company that hauled the original carpet and some furniture out of the 14-year-old building and took down numerous 2-by-4-foot ceiling tiles on Tuesday. Assistant Fire Chief John Magri said that the contractor, who was not named, left behind a layer of dust and debris in the living quarters that upset firefighters who arrived at work yesterday morning. Union representatives voiced their concern at a morning meeting attended by Town Manager Julian Suso, Capital Buildings Project Manager Doug Goddard and Board of Health Director Ethan Mascoop. As result of the meeting, the Fire Department brought in another company to clean up and disinfect the area in the Loring Drive station. "We agreed that we need to be more stringent," said Magri, who called the firefighters' concerns "genuine." Magri said 14 workers from Servicemaster by Gilmore Brothers were performing surface cleaning and sanitizing "to make the guys comfortable." The on-duty firefighters temporarily lost their living quarters and hung out upstairs, outside and in the garage while waiting for calls. Meanwhile, Goddard said he hired a Stoneham firm called Envirotech to clean the HVAC system's air ducts. That work should start as soon as next Monday, Goddard said. Once the ducts are cleaned, the town plans to close the dampers to keep hot, humid air outside. An expert from the state Department of Public Health is set to visit the station today to inspect and make recommendations on sealing the building in order to improve indoor air quality. Officials say the mold is not posing an imminent health threat, but firefighters who work and live at Station 3 are not convinced. Nardini said crew members sometimes wake up in the station with sore throats, bloody noses or headaches, and he speculates it's from the mold. He said a senior firefighter transferred out of the station because of it. "You leave the building," he said,"(and) within three, four hours, it's fine."
Framingham firefighters, chief frustrated with mold issue	July 27, 2010
Danielle Ameden 508-626-4416	Metrowest Daily News
FRAMINGHAM -- As the town works on a fix, firefighters say they're frustrated and nervous about living with mold that continues to grow in the Loring Drive Fire Headquarters. Mold that had been eliminated several years ago has come back because of humidity at the downtown station built in 1996, said Capital Buildings Project Manager Doug Goddard. The town has hired air quality consultants and officials yesterday said they have a plan to permanently eliminate the health hazard. "We've been working on the problem since I got here," said Chief Gary Daugherty, who started on the job last January and works in the building. He said the poor air quality poses no immediate safety concern. "Everybody's working together to get it squared away," he said. Goddard said the building's design and construction may be to blame for problems with the heating, ventilation and cooling system. "One of the problems is there's too much outdoor air coming into the building," he said. He said exterior air ducts are 10 times larger than they need to be. That could be because they were installed before the department had a separate vent for exhaust captured from trucks in the garage. "The system is basically overdesigned for the building, according to what the engineer is saying," Daugherty said. The abundance of air, and its dampness due to the humidity and summer heat, is causing more mold to grow, Goddard said. It's also causing uneasiness. "The guys are a little nervous," said firefighter Peter DeVito, president of the Framingham Firefighters Local 1652 union. "We're frustrated." Daugherty said he understands. "It's frustrating for everybody," Daugherty said. "It's frustrating for me, it's frustrating for the people who work here. It takes up a lot of our time that we could be spending on other issues." The building has had problems "for quite a while," he said. DeVito said air quality has improved under the new chief's watch but "it just seems like it's been taking forever." Goddard said the town has hired a microbiologist, industrial hygienist and engineer using $70,000 that Town Meeting raised last year. He said consultants came to a meeting last week attended by Town Manager Julian Suso, the chief and union representatives to discuss a solution. The plan for a fix involves closing the outside air dampers - the flapping valve in the ducts - so there's less air coming in, Goddard said. He said Daugherty can do that over the Internet using digital controls. Before doing that, Goddard said the department wants to make sure the ducts are clean. Officials worry the mold would become airborne if it's inside ducts that dry out, which would pose a real threat. "We don't want to endanger anybody's health," he said. The hard metal ducts will be scrubbed and disinfected, and accordion-like flexible ducts will be replaced because the insides are tough to reach. "We'll review the situation" once that work is done and the dampers are closed, Goddard said. He said additional humidity control devices might be necessary. Goddard said he is now soliciting bids from contractors.

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	Every tax is a pay cut. Every tax cut is a pay raise.
Just because you're not interested in politics doesn't mean politics isn't interested in you.