An Enniskillen woman, who has resorted to sleeping on her sofa due to her belief that black mold growing in the bedrooms of her accommodation is impacting her health, claims that the Housing Executive are not helping her deal with the issue.
Lisa McElroy told this newspaper that she is “vomiting constantly”, which she believes is a result of black mold caused by rising damp in the Housing Executive property in Cornagrade, Enniskillen, which she moved into in March, 2021.
Mold in Lisa McElroy's house.
“I moved in last March and it was always moldy,” said Lisa, noting that the property has two bedrooms, and she had previously been swapping between the two, to avoid the black mold.
“I’m constantly cleaning it, and I was just changing from bedroom to bedroom to see which would be the driest to sleep in, [but] neither of them [are].
“Now I’m just sleeping on the sofa full-time because the mold is that bad in [both] the rooms,” she added.
Although the Housing Executive has diagnosed the house with rising damp, Lisa has yet to see any action from them to fix the issue.
“They [the Housing Executive] came out and took a wee bit out of the wall, and they said they’d come back, but they don’t come back,” she said.
Mold in Lisa McElroy's house.
When asked how the mold growing in her house is impacting her life, Lisa said: “Every day, I’m constantly vomiting.”
She claimed: “I have asked them to put me in temporary accommodation, and they said no, they wouldn’t.”
When Lisa first reported the mold to the Housing Executive, she was told that it was condensation, she said, adding: “They fobbed me off with that one for a long time.
“But I kept at them because I was getting sicker and sicker with it,” said Lisa, explaining that she has been experiencing health issues such as a dry throat and feeling tired all the time, which she believes has been caused by the black mold.
“I was feeling sick and I’m actually being sick now, constantly, because it’s just in your chest and in your stomach.
“I’m just really, really frustrated. Furniture that I brought with me is destroyed – I had to dump it. I can’t get any decorating done or anything because it would just be destroyed.
“I’ve bought wallpaper because I like the place. I do like it – it’s just this damp and mold is affecting my health, and it’s getting worse every day.
Mold in Lisa McElroy's house.
“I can’t even get a proper night’s sleep because I’m sleeping on the sofa,” she told this newspaper.
The Impartial Reporter contacted the Housing Executive, questioning if black mold is a health and safety issue, why they are not prioritising fixing this issue for their tenant?
A spokesperson for the Housing Executive said: “We have identified issues with a wall cavity which may be causing issues with damp at this property.
“Following an inspection, we have arranged for remedial works to take place to address this.
“The property is also included in a window replacement scheme which will get under way in the area in the near future.”
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