The health department employee who investigates mold problems in southwest Florida is a very busy guy. Bob Kallotte inspects homes and businesses in seven counties. He says since Hurricane Charley last August, he’s investigated 16-thousand mold issues. Kallotte gets lots of calls from people whose doctors suspected mold was causing their respiratory problems or other reactions. Mold needs water to grow—and last year’s storm provided plenty of that. Speaking on WGCU’s Gulf Coast Live, Kallotte said homes that had only minor damage are often prime grounds for mold growth.

“It’s the home that only had a corner of the roof blown off or one window blown in… the water that got into those walls—under those carpets—that are creating mold problems. And people are, in some cases, ignoring the mold issues.”

In the last session, Florida lawmakers passed a home inspector and mold remediation bill. It creates certification guidelines for people who work in mold elimination.