Westmoreland County apartment residents say flooding, mold are making homes unsafe

The Starboard Villa Apartments in Hempfield Township, Westmoreland County, are dealing with a flooding problem every time heavy rain hits the area.

Now, residents are saying enough is enough, as they try to combat water damage to their homes and property and health issues from mold growing in their units.

When you walk inside James Good's home, you're met with the heavy smell of mildew. Good, along with several of his neighbors at Starboard, has been dealing with this flooding for well over a month.

"Fourth of July weekend, we've had terrible flooding," said Good. "We had all those storms, all that rain; it formed a pool of water, basically a river in the back of the apartment, coming off the hill, and water would just seep through my door, seep through the walls into my living room and completely soak my carpets."

Good said he called his management company, Birgo Realty, based in Pittsburgh, and a day or so later, they sent a team to rip up his carpet, take out some of the mold that had formed on his walls, and even put sandbags in the back of the property to try and divert rain runoff from the backyard hillside.

But the flooding did not die down.

Good says his renter's insurance doesn't cover flooding, and now Birgo pays little attention to the problem, even though he is still paying full rent and living in a home that is damaged almost every time it rains.

"I just want to live in a reasonable and safe condition," said Good. "That's all I want to do. I want to live in a comfortable way, a safe way, without having to worry about my health, the health of my animals, or the health of my neighbors, who are also great people and I care about, too."

One of those neighbors is Shawnwonna Cuff, who, like Good, has had considerable damage to her unit and belongings.

She says the mold was so bad in her space that it made her sick. She actually got a medical bill for her most recent hospital visits while KDKA was with her on Friday.

Cuff says she can't stay in her home for more than a few minutes without having breathing trouble, and she, like several other neighbors, is ready to move out despite the financial hardship that would bring.

"I just want to make some people aware because they're still renting these places out and they're not telling anyone what's going on," said Cuff. "So, you're putting people's lives in danger. So hopefully, this will spread awareness, and people will be aware of renting from them, because it's just not a good place to rent from."

KDKA-TV reached out three different times to Birgo on Friday, twice by phone and once via email, but did not hear back for comment.

For now, the people living at the Starboard Villa Apartments will have to continue dealing with this problem. Unfortunately for them, rain is predicted for this weekend, which could flood their apartments once again.