LAWRENCEBURG — Health officials have ordered school officials to immediately begin cleaning potentially hazardous mold out of Lawrenceburg High School.

        The high school's fourth floor has largely been evacuated, state health officials have been called in, and more testing for toxic mold has been ordered in response to the order by Dearborn County Health Department officials.

        Moreover, county health officials said in their report to school officials that “the existing health conditions may have adverse health effects” on those inside the building.

        The report calls for extensive cleaning of the high school's heating and cooling systems, wallpaper removal, removal of water-damaged ceiling materials, and the cleaning and resealing of windows.

        The school remains open for its more than 500 students, but most classes held on the fourth floor have been moved elsewhere in the building, said Craig Bernius, business manager for the Lawrenceburg School District.

        “We still don't know the full scope of the problem. It's an old building ... that might have been sealed up too tight,” Mr. Bernius said of the 67-year-old high school.

        Verification of mold proliferation last week prompted the closing of two classrooms, one of which contained high, potentially dangerous levels of the toxic mold Stachybotrys chartarum.

        County health officials said in a Monday report that “on all floors it appears the mold growth has happened slowly over a long period of time and appears to be concentrated around the windows.”

        Further, they reported there likely are multiple causes for the mold.

        Lawrenceburg Principal Anthony Dietrich said classes are proceeding with no increase in reports of student illness.

        Some Lawrenceburg parents say they have complained for months that mold underneath peeling wallpaper in some of the classrooms was making some students ill.

        Mr. Dietrich said the school has enough capacity to handle moving students from the closed rooms to other instructional areas while the cleanup work begins.

        Symptoms of exposure to airborne mold spores can duplicate allergic and asthmatic responses in some people. In other cases, they can expand into severe and chronic illnesses, such as severe headaches, shortness of breath, burning eyes, sinus and respiratory infections, rashes, severe itching, dizziness, memory loss and fatigue.

        In rare cases some toxic molds can cause pulmonary fibrosis, which can eventually kill those inhaling the microscopic mold spores by choking off lung capacity but such cases are extremely rare.

        The report was generated by Dr. Gary Scudder, the top health officer for Dearborn County, who refused to comment.

        Dr. Scudder has declined to comment to the Enquirer despite repeated requests during the last two weeks. The Enquirer originally notified Lawrenceburg school officials about possible mold hazard after obtaining mold test results ordered by Dr. Scudder.

        Lawrenceburg High School parent Donna Thacker called the reaction of school, county and state health officials “overdue” but welcomed the new attention to the possible health hazards posed by mold in the high school.

        “I just hope they are doing what they should be doing in the right way,” Ms. Thacker said in reference to the often complex testing and remediation work required to remove mold spores from a building.

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