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Family of five forced to live in backyard tent because their $480,000 home is infested with ‘unlivable’ black mold that’s sickening their young children
- Victorian family of five lives in tent after new house becomes ‘uninhabitable’
- The Walsh-Baldwins also failed to get an insurance claim paid
- An ‘incredible’ case of mold has sickened each of their three children
A family of five lives in a cold, damp and stuffy tent after massive rainfall caused black mold to grow and spread in their recently purchased home in Victoria.
Andrew Walsh-Baldwin and his Angalina took the drastic measure of moving into the backyard of their $480,000 property after toxic mold sickened all three of their young children.
Construction experts say construction flaws that don’t allow proper drainage under the home, combined with the unprecedented amount of rain, have made their dream home “unlivable.”
Mrs. Walsh-Baldwin burst into tears when she said, “It froze” while living in the tent.
“This should have been our house,” she said 9News.
A family of five lives in a cold, damp and stuffy tent after massive rainfall caused black mold (pictured on their carpets) to grow and spread in their recently purchased home in Victoria
Her husband Baldwin said, “Recently we got 6 ounces (rain). I can’t believe…we’re here now.’
“The kids are getting sick and have missed an entire period of kindergarten,” he said. “You just feel inadequate right now because we failed as a parent.”
Dr. Cameron Jones of Biological Health Services, who inspected the house, said it was one of the worst cases he had ever seen.
“When I did moisture tests on the wood, they show somewhere between 20 and 30 percent more,” he said.
The safe level is a maximum of 15 percent.
All of the family’s home’s carpets are now ripped, revealing the shocking levels of mold with the spores clinging to the fibers on the underside.
Andrew Walsh-Baldwin and his Angalina took the drastic measure of moving into the backyard of their $480,000 property in a tent after the toxic mold caused all three of their young children to fall ill
Building inspector Zeher Khalil, who helps the family for free, said what he found inside the house is “incredible.”
“There is no water stop separating the wet area from the non-wet area,” he said.
‘We need a sewer system and there are no sewers here.’
The Walsh-Baldwins said they were unaware of any sewer problems when they bought the property from the owner-builder earlier this year.
“To pay $480,000 for this house, I just feel like I was ripped off,” said Ms. Walsh-Baldwin.
Construction experts say construction flaws that don’t allow proper drainage under the house, combined with the unprecedented amount of rain, have made their dream home “unlivable”
The family is insured with Allianz, but their claims were denied because the company said the defects already existed.
“We have rights too,” Mrs. Walsh-Baldwin said. “We didn’t cause this inadequate drainage.”
The family is considering taking legal action against the builder and the construction supervisor.
“I don’t believe owner-builders are regulated enough,” said Ms Walsh-Baldwin.