A year after evacuating the Autauga County Jail due to the presence of mold, Autauga Sheriff Mark Harrell filed suit Friday against the Autauga County Commission seeking a legal remedy.
“For more than a year I have tried to work with the Autauga County Commission to obtain the mold remediation, funding and completion on the Autauga County Metro Jail,” Harrell said Friday in a statement announcing the suit. “I have made numerous requests to the Commission which have either been denied or ignored.
“Perhaps most significant, is the fact that the Commission, for whatever reason, has just failed to provide communication on the many issues regarding the jail and the remediation of the jail that has been ongoing since I had to evacuate the Autauga County Metro Jail almost one year ago because of the health and safety concerns as a result of the presence of ‘black mold’ and other issues.”
Harrell’s sudden evacuation of the jail a year ago kicked up a battle between the commission and the sheriff. While the commission did not deny the presence of mold, it argued that evacuation was unnecessary.
The sheriff and commission each had different third parties analyze and make recommendations based on the mold situation.
The county’s contractor, Environmental Materials Consultants, said individuals in the jail should have PPE such as masks, but did not call for evacuation.
“Mold is present in most environments around the world,” the report states. “There are thousands of types of mold with many types of subspecies. Everyone is exposed to molds spores in office buildings, stores, restaurants, in their homes and every day in the natural environment. The types of mold identified at the time of this assessment are very typical and extremely common for most indoor air environments, especially in Alabama. Most individuals with healthy immune systems do not exhibit health concerns or reactions under certain conditions and where spore counts stay within a normal or average range.”
The sheriff’s contractor, A Plus Cleaning & Restoration, took a more concerned tone that claimed evacuation would be necessary.
