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HUD secretary, state elected officials to tour drywall-tainted Boynton home
U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan will join U.S. Reps. Robert Wexler, Ron Klein and Mario Diaz-Balart tomorrow on a tour of a Boynton Beach doctor’s home contaminated by Chinese drywall.
The entourage, which includes state Sen. Ted Deutch, will visit Steve and Jennifer Robert’s home in Cobblestone Creek. The Roberts’ daughter has been afflicted with frequent respiratory infections possibly caused by the toxic drywall.
Palm Beach County officials, including Wexler and Klein, have pushed Congress to do something about the tainted building product, as has U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson.
s had on the lives of the Roberts family, who own a home in the community of Cobblestone Creek. Dr. Steve Roberts and his wife Jennifer Roberts have struggled with their 16 month-old daughter’s frequent respiratory infections, and the fact that their home has lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in value as a result of this toxic product.
WHO:
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan
Congressman Robert Wexler
Congressman Mario-Diaz Balart
Congressman Ron Klein
State Senator Ted Deutch
WHAT:
Press Availability Following Tour of Home
WHERE:
The home of Dr. Steve Roberts and Jennifer Roberts
10013 Cobblestone Creek Drive, Boynton Beach, FL
WHEN:
Tuesday, October 13, 10:30-11:30 am
WCI to emerge from bankruptcy
A Delaware Bankruptcy Court has approved WCI Communities’ reorganization plan.
The approval comes a little more than a year after the Bonita Springs-based luxury homebuilder filed for Chapter 11.
Under the plan, which was filed in June and supported by WCI’s senior secured lenders and official creditors committee, WCI will eliminate more than $2 billion of debt and liabilities from its balance sheet, the company said in a news release.
WCI said it expects to emerge from bankruptcy on Aug. 31.
The plan calls for the company’s senior secured lenders to receive $450 million of new debt and an initial 95 percent equity stake in WCI. Unsecured creditors will receive interests in a litigation trust and an initial 5 percent equity stake that could increase to as much as 35 percent depending on future operations. All existing shares in the company are being cancelled and will receive no recovery.
David L. Fry, who has been with WCI since 1995, will continue to serve as president and CEO of the reorganized company.
“WCI, along with its major constituent groups, have worked together to fashion a plan that allows us to emerge as a deleveraged lifestyle community developer and land holding company and ensures that recoveries are allocated fairly among the company’s stakeholders,” Fry said in a statement.
Last month, a bankruptcy judge approved revisions to the original plan to include a trust account for claims against insurers or suppliers regarding defective Chinese drywall.
In January, WCI said in an SEC filing that it was setting aside $11 million for homes that needed air conditioning coil replacement, “which may or may not be related to the Chinese drywall.”
http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/stories/2009/08/24/daily54.html
Chinese Drywall News Alerts
Air sampling not the best method for testing defective Chinese drywall
EMSL Analytical offers testing solutions for imported drywall.
With numerous media reports of imported Chinese drywall causing unpleasant odors and damage to building materials EMSL Analytical has been busy testing samples from across the country.
The problem appears to be related to the presence of iron disulfide (FeS2 pyrite). Hydrogen sulfide (H2S), carbonyl sulfide, sulfur dioxide (SO2), and carbon disulfide (CS2) are also suspected as culprits. EMSL Analytical has recently developed a procedure that can accurately compare certain sulfur gasses contained in suspect drywall versus control samples.
Air sampling methods (such as EPA TO-15 and ASTM D5504) do not consistently identify spaces with other odorous drywall symptoms, such as odors, irritation, and copper corrosion. There are so many factors, including temperature, moisture, HVAC operation, etc., that affect what is present in the air that other sampling methods should be utilized. Bulk testing has proven to be the most reliable testing methods. EMSL can show that the material differs in composition from normal, non-problem drywall by XRF/XRD microscopy. This test alone may not tell the whole story.
Another important test is a copper corrosion test that EMSL has developed. For those important projects, the consultant should consider performing all of the tests listed above.
http://www.environmental-expert.com/resultEachPressRelease.aspx?cid=21001&codi=60585&lr=1
The Florida Department of Health recently launched a website to help owners indifty contamintated drywall both internally and domestic
http://www.doh.state.fl.us/environment/community/indoor-air/casedefinition.html
Chinese drywall found in Tampa homes
TAMPA – Toxic Chinese drywall has been discovered in several new homes in the Hampton Lakes subdivision in Tampa.
Builder Beazer Homes says 18 homes in the neighborhood appear to have the dangerous drywall.
Resident Robert Morris bought his three-story town home in the subdivision two years ago. At the time, it felt like the perfect buy. But he says it doesn’t feel that way anymore.
The coils on his air conditioner are black with corrosion. Morris says he knew little about toxic Chinese drywall until the letters started coming from Beazer Homes last month. The mounting air conditioner repair bills suddenly made sense.
http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/news/local/hillsborough/tampa_homes_chinese_drywall_082009
Chinese Drywall Homeowners Anxiously Await Investigation Findings
Federal regulators are expected to release the findings of Chinese drywall investigations in September. According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, if the investigations conclude that a “substantial” electrical, fire or health hazard exists, homeowners living with Chinese drywall will face some tough choices.
For months now, we have reported on homeowner complaints regarding Chinese drywall. Earlier this year, tests conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revealed that Chinese-manufactured drywall contained elevated levels of strontium sulfide, as well as several organic compounds associated with the production of acrylic paint which were not present in samples of U.S.-made drywall.
According to the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC), most of the 810 Chinese drywall complaints it has received since last December have come from Florida (621). The state with the second highest count is Louisiana (105). Others have come from consumers in Alabama, Arizona, California, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming, and the District of Columbia.
http://www.newsinferno.com/archives/10243
CPSC’s Drywall Investigation Update
CPSC has received about 608 reports from residents in 21 states and the District of Columbia who believe their health symptoms or the corrosion of certain metal components in their homes are related to the presence of drywall produced in China. State and local authorities have also received similar reports.
Senators seek tax relief for Chinese drywall victims
Three U.S. senators, including Florida Democrat Bill Nelson, and a U.S. congressman have written to the Internal Revenue Service asking that costs incurred by homeowners who have fallen victim to Chinese drywall should be deductible for federal tax purposes.
The letter, sent Tuesday, asks the IRS to clarify whether section 165(h) of the tax code — which allows taxpayers to deduct “casualty losses” suffered as a result of an unexpected event such as a fire, storm or theft — could apply Chinese drywall victims.
Chinese-Made Drywall: June 18 Conference in New Orleans, Site of Multidistrict Litigation
NEW ORLEANS, June 17 /PRNewswire/ — The U.S. District Court in New Orleans has been chosen as the site of multidistrict litigation for lawsuits arising from allegedly defective Chinese-made drywall. This decision comes in the same month as a comprehensive legal conference on the subject, set for tomorrow, Thursday, June 18, at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.
For more information about the “Chinese Drywall Litigation Conference” on Thursday, June 18, contact the conference producer, HB Litigation Conferences, formerly Mealey’s Conferences, by phone at (484) 324-2755, by email at info@LitigationConferences.com, or by visiting the conferences section at HB’s website at www.LitigationConferences.com.
Contact
Sharon Boothe
Sharon.Boothe@LitigationConferences.com
(484) 324-2755 x208
www.litigationconferences.com
Chinese drywall class actions head to Big Easy
Class action lawsuits filed around the country against Chinese drywall manufacturers will be consolidated and tried in New Orleans, The Times-Picayune reported Monday morning.
The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, which consolidates similar cases filed in different federal courts before a single judge, has assigned the case to U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon, the paper reported.
Attorneys in South Florida argued that Miami would be a better location, because a majority of Chinese drywall problems and lawsuits have occurred there. The problems first cropped up in southwest Florida’s Gulf Coast cities. The drywall was imported following hurricanes Katrina and Wilma in 2005, after the housing boom and rebuilding efforts created a material shortage among domestic suppliers.
http://www.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2009/06/15/daily14.html
Policies may not cover the drywall
By Aaron Kessler
ORLANDO – It may not be the sexiest of topics, but the intricacies of insurance policies may prove to be paramount in deciding who winds up footing the bill for the tainted drywall eating away at homes in Florida and other states.
The topic took center stage Friday at a Chinese drywall litigation conference in Orlando. The aspect receiving perhaps the most attention was pollution.
An increasing number of affected residents are turning to their homeowners insurance policies for help after discovering they are victims of tainted drywall.
Chinese Drywall Liability Bill Under Consideration in Louisiana
A Chinese drywall bill currently under consideration in the Louisiana legislature would require the businesses found responsible for the drywall debacle to foot the entire bill for damages sustained by Louisiana homeowners. According to a report on wwltv.com, the Louisiana state legislature is expected to take up the Chinese drywall bill sometime this morning.
Homeowners in at least 18 states have complained that fumes from Chinese-made drywall produce a “rotten eggs” odor and cause metals, such as air conditioning coils, to corrode. The fumes have also been associated with respiratory and sinus problems in some residents. According to a recent Wall Street Journal article, the U.S. imported roughly 309 million square feet of drywall from China during the housing boom from 2004 to 2007. In Louisiana, many homeowners who had to be rebuild following Hurricane Katrina have discovered that the tainted drywall was used in their homes.
Earlier this month, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released results of tests it conducted that compared Chinese drywall to American-made material. The tests found sulfur and two organic compounds associated with acrylic paint in the Chinese drywall that were not present in the American wallboard. The agency said more testing is needed to determine if any of the compounds found in the Chinese drywall are responsible for problems reported by homeowners