MOUNT POCONO, Pa. — The Mount Pocono borough building is closed until further notice after mold was found in the basement.
"It's been a wet summer with the hurricanes. Hurricane Henri and Ida, we did experience a lot of water in the basement, so we are assuming that's probably what's causing some of the mold growth. As soon as we found it out, we shut the building, sent the staff home, the staff is working from home right now," said Joshua Walker, Mount Pocono borough manager.
Walker says fewer than ten people work in the building daily. Last week, some employees started to not feel well.
An air quality test was ordered and that's when mold was found.
"The safety of the people and public is the most, it's our number one priority. As soon as we heard someone was not feeling well, that's a significant issue. We needed to check that they were doing well and then shut the building down and prevent anyone from going into the space," said Walker.
Walker says it's going to be some time before employees are allowed back in. They want to make sure the fix is permanent, and they want to make sure it's not going to cost taxpayers too much.
"It's an old building, there's probably a lot of cracks, a lot of leaks. We really want to find them, seal and deal with them because that's the most important thing for the taxpayers. If we have to spend a significant amount of money, we want to make sure it's a lasting fix and the right fix," said Walker.
The borough manager says any documents covered in the mold will be cleaned and scanned digitally. The whole building will get a deep clean before anyone is allowed back in.
While the building is closed, public hearings are being held at the fire hall in the borough.