LSU Residential Life responded to a viral Tweet about an alleged mold outbreak in West Campus Apartment Aug. 16.
The original post attached a picture of mold on her chair, and said that was “just a little bit of the mold” she found, and that it’s “absolutely disgusting.”
“So I moved in on LSU’s campus today and I found that my entire apartment, walls and all, were covered in mold,” @itssszayy wrote on Twitter.
LSU Residential Life issued a response apologizing for the student’s first experience on campus and saying the mold was a result of the air conditioning left on the incorrect setting after cleaning.
“Our team has been cleaning and replacing furniture,” @LSUResLife wrote.
According to Poison Control, mold – which is technically varying types of fungi – can induce allergies and respiratory conditions. Asthma may be aggravated as well as coughing, sneezing, and possibly respiratory infection.
In 2019, a mold outbreak in South Hall caused several residents to be relocated to WCA. LSU Residential Life Communications and Development Associate Director Catherine David said the residential halls being at full capacity that year combined with the warm fall temperatures may have contributed to the mildew related work orders.
Assistant Vice President for Residential Life Steve Waller said the dorms are still near full capacity this year despite COVID-19 social distancing measures. Only 75 beds out of a total 7,000 are not in use.
In this case, the mold in @itssszayy’s room grew over a few days after an A/C error that caused warm air to be drawn in from outside.
“After the final cleaning, some apartments in WCA had the A/C setting switched from ‘auto’ to ‘fan,’” Waller said. “Any space with an imbalance of air temperature and humidity levels, like the apartments became in this scenario, is an open invitation for mildew to develop.”
According to Waller, there were two reported cases of mold or mildew in the WCA that both stemmed from the same air conditioning issue.
Residential Life made it clear that the conditions of both rooms were unacceptable for student living.
“A campus space in that condition is not up to our standards,” Waller said. “We regret the residents had this experience.”
After the reports, Waller said Residential Life attempted to rectify the situation.
“We worked directly with [the students] to clean the apartment spaces and replace furniture,” Waller said.
LSU Res Life adheres to all the CDC regulations regarding coronavirus, according to the LSU Residential Life website. Some of their cleaning measures include disinfecting elevators several times a day, placing hand sanitizers at every entrance and at various other locations throughout the building and disinfecting common spaces four times a day Monday through Friday.
ECA and WCA bathrooms, along with community bathrooms, receive a full detail cleaning and an electrostatic sprayer disinfection once per week.
“Students remain responsible for their individual room’s cleanliness and taking preventative measures,” the website reads.
Additionally, @itssszayy tweeted that Residential Life told her they were trying to find her and her roommate a new apartment but they would have to wait for everyone to move in. They also replaced the couches, stools and chairs and cleaned everything with bleach.
