NORFOLK -- Firefighters who work at Naval fire stations across Hampton Roads say a mold problem inside fire houses is getting worse.
"Right now, management is endangering the lives of all my firefighters," said Tim Pritchard, president of Local F-25.
Pritchard says mold has been a problem in fire houses at Norfolk Naval Station fire house #2, on at Naval Air Station Oceana, and at Dam Neck.
"The situation is throughout the Navy region throughout the Hampton Roads area," said Pritchard.
He said many firefighters are suffering from sinus infections, ear infections and upper respiratory infections because of the conditions.
13News first reported on complaints of mold at fire houses on base in January of 2011 where a firefighter who worked at Naval Station Norfolk said he suffered from severe allergic reactions while working there.
Since then, Pritchard says not much has been done to get rid of the mold saying, "They really haven't changed. All they did was put dehumidifiers in there to rectify this problem and ordered people not to talk about it."
A public affairs officer for NAS and Dam Neck told us that she does not believe there are any mold issues at the fire station at Oceana. However, she said the mold problem at Dam Neck is being fixed by replacing walls that were saturated by leaky windows.
A public affairs officer for Naval Station Norfolk said that when the fire station was tested last year, there was no detectable mold.
She also added that the Navy hasn't received any recent complaints from firefighters on mold issues at fire station #2.
Beth Baker, director for public affairs at Commander Navy Region Mid-Atlantic, sent 13News the following statement:
"The safety, health and well-being of our personnel is a top priority.
As you have previously reported, the Navy became aware of a mold issue at Fire Station #2 on Naval Station Norfolk in February 2010 as a result of water intrusion into the building. An industrial hygiene investigation was conducted by the Navy Environmental Preventative Medicine Unit from Naval Medical Center Portsmouth in March 2010 to determine the nature and extent of the mold in the facility, with a follow-up report in October 2010.
Any visible mold was professionally cleaned; dehumidifiers were installed, carpets were professionally cleaned, and water intrusion issues have been traced and addressed, to include sealing the brick face of the building and windows and cleaning of the ventilation systems. There have been no complaints of mold at Fire Station #2 since the last Industrial Hygiene inspection.
There was water intrusion at a Fire Station on Dam Neck following a major storm system. The Navy Facilities Engineering Command, along with installation and Fire Department management, took immediate steps to mitigate.
The Navy continues to remain vigilant and address any concerns from personnel at these stations, and at all of our fire stations throughout the region."
