By David Fisher Staff Reporter

   

     As testimony came to a close during Thursday’s reconvened hearing concerning a motion filed by Carol Hinman, the mother of two Westview students, who requested a temporary injunction to close Westview High School until it is free from mold contamination, 27^th Judicial Circuit Court Judge William Acree informed all concerned parties how he plans to proceed with the case.

 

Case Continued Until April

 

    Judge Acree stated that, after he reviews the depositions to be taken from expert witnesses in the case, he would decide whether or not to order remediation of mold at Westview High School. However, he added that even if he does decide to order remediation, it would not be before summer break when students will be out of school. Acree noted that this would provide ample time for bids to be let out and the work to be completed before the school reopens in the fall.

    Judge Acree stated that he would require depositions to be taken from expert witnesses in the case, rather than relying on affidavits, in order to provide an opportunity for attorneys on both sides to question them.

    Before adjourning for the day, Judge Acree dismissed H&M Construction Company Inc. from an initial lawsuit filed by Richard and Julie Joost, who attribute their son’s illness to mold conditions in the school. The motion to dismiss H&M was filed by attorney Lee Chase, who argued Monday that a state law allows a four-year window to file a lawsuit against a construction company for new buildings, and since Westview opened its present facility to students in 1997, the window of complaint closed in 2001.

    Additionally, Acree granted plaintiffs a motion to sample Martin Middle School for mold.

    Judge Acree ordered that the hearing, which began last Monday and continued on Thursday, would be adjourned until 9 a.m. on Monday, April 21.

 

Testimony

 

    During Thursday’s injunction hearing, which lasted approximately six hours, a total of six witnesses for the Plaintiffs took the stand to testify about matters pertaining to the case.

    As the proceedings got underway, heating and air conditioning technician James Brewer, who previously worked at Westview High School as an employee of the Weakley County School Department from about July 2006 to July 2007, took the stand to continue his testimony from Monday’s hearing.

    During his earlier testimony on Monday, Brewer explained that since the heating and cooling system that is supposed to inject fresh outside air into the school was not functioning, it only circulated stale air. He stated that until the mechanical problems at Westview are corrected, the moisture problem concerning the mold growth would continue.

    During testimony on Thursday, Plaintiffs’ attorney Amber Griffin of the law firm of Parrish and Shaw in Memphis showed a video taken by Brewer in March or April of 2007 showing the conditions at Westview High School inside the mechanical room. In a portion of the video, Brewer was seen pointing to disconnected wires to indicate that one of the two water-circulating pumps was disconnected. He also testified that he was not allowed to work on the system, even though his training qualified him to do so.

    Brewer testified that it is important to always have two circulation pumps operating in an HVAC system like the one at Westview – a lead pump and a lag pump, which cycle back and forth to pump water through the system, in order not to overburden a single pump, causing premature wear, as well as to provide a backup in case one of the pumps fail. He explained that as the pumps get older, they lose efficiency, and the pump’s impellers wear down to where there is very little left. This means less water pumped and therefore reduced heating and cooling efficiency. Brewer stated that a malfunctioning HVAC system would result in its inability to maintain proper relative humidity levels, and cause excess moisture. And high humidity is conducive to mold growth. Brewer further testified that, to the best of his knowledge, no one ever checked the humidity at Westview High School.

    The video also showed standing water in the mechanical room, which Brewer testified can cause mold growth. He stated that mold can not only spread throughout a building where it is present, it can also actually get inside of the equipment and forms a sludge, stopping up drain lines. Brewer also stated that the mechanical room is adjacent to the hallway and that the evaporating moisture can cause mold spores to become airborne and once they get into the hallways, the spores can be carried throughout the school.

    Brewer testified that because the HVAC system was not functioning properly, due to dirty coils, a hose had been hooked up to sprinkle water on the chiller to keep the temperature low enough to prevent it from overheating to the point that the safety system would turn it off. He stated that this part of the system was outside of the building. Essentially, his testimony was that the sprinkler was set up to treat the symptom, rather than fix the problem.

    Additionally, Brewer stated that he witnessed puddles of water in low places on top of the gym roof, which he said could cause mold growth inside of the building. He explained that the standing water on the roof produced a cool area as the water evaporated, and that this cooler temperature underneath the standing water was transferred to the underside of the metal roof. Since the air adjacent to the roof in these areas was hot, it caused condensation underneath the standing water, which dripped down to the ceilings below and that this accumulating moisture contributes to mold growth.

    During cross-examination by attorney Chuck Cagle, who represents the defendants in the case, namely the Weakley County School Board and Director of Weakley County Schools, Cagle asked what Brewer’s training was in roofing or roof construction. Brewer replied that he was not a trained roofer, nor had he any experience in roof construction.

    Cagle asked Brewer if during his employment by the Weakley County School Department his relationship with his employer and fellow employees was a good one, to which Brewer answered up until around April of 2007.

(Check out the rest of this story in this week's print edition of the Dresden Enterprise!)