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NewsChannel 3 continues to expose military housing mold issues

Posted at 3:54 PM, Nov 23, 2011
and last updated 2012-04-09 17:28:34-04

More and more members of the military in Hampton Roads are coming forward to tell NewsChannel 3 about their experiences with Lincoln Military Housing and how mold has taken over their homes and made them ill.

When Navy wife Lori Clark heard about the families struggling with Lincoln, she felt she had to speak out.

The CHKD nurse moved into Gela Point Homes back in 2006. She moved out a few months later after tests revealed she had seven different types of mold at dangerous levels in her air conditioning system.

“When it comes to my children being ill on the verge of being in the hospital and having symptoms that scare me as a nurse that takes care of children, that was it,” says Clark.

Initially, it was just black spots showing up in her vents. Then she says a duct company found black mold in her air conditioner coils.

Lincoln told her they wouldn't test it, but they would clean her home instead.

“They certainly didn’t clean it,” says Clark.

Lori paid for her own mold inspector and when she showed Lincoln the test results proving that it was mold, she received a letter which stated:

“Based on our advice of expert counsel, we believe your home is safe to occupy.”

“To me, that’s saying ‘we don’t think you are going to sue, so we're gonna keep messing with you until you give up and you do what we want you to do.’ They are really being bullies,” says Clark.

When she went to Navy housing following, proper protocol, she was given another option.

“He told us that if we had belongings we were concerned about, perhaps we should wrap them in plastic. And I said, 'my children? do you think that would work?'- my couch, my cat, how about that?” said Clark.

Dozens of families told us the same stories of frustration with Lincoln and other places as well.

Navy Region Mid-Atlantic told us their housing records don't show the same complaints or any documented patterns of Lincoln not living up to their military housing lease and contract.

In a statement they said “'The Navy will continue to monitor the situation and address any continuing health and safety concerns with Lincoln. Taking care of our military families in Hampton Roads is a top priority.”

All the families we talked to say more needs to be done.

We've told the Navy that we won't stop investigating until we get results.