KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Northland woman and her dog are showing signs of illness after she said doctors told her they’re both allergic to mold.
Lana Becerra moved into her Northland apartment off Barry Road near Waukomis Drive last fall.
Come springtime, she and her boyfriend started to notice mold in their bedroom closet. Becerra said it took maintenance a month and a half, but they came in and painted over it.
“They assured me that this was going to take care of the problem, that basically, they told me repeatedly it wasn’t dangerous. Only 2% of mold is dangerous and that it can’t hurt us,” Becerra said.
So she and her boyfriend stayed, despite the fact the mold was growing. Becerra said.
“For a month and a half, we waited, because we thought you know, they were going to fix it. Then when it hit two months, we were like, okay, we really need to take action here. It was a struggle and arguing back and forth on the phone, basically them telling me it’s not their fault.”
Becerra continued, “The only thing we were ever told was that we could move out into a two-bedroom apartment and pay a hundred and something more, or we could break our lease and move out. Those were the two options we were given.”
After both she and her dog got sick, they just moved out. She went to an ER because she couldn’t stop coughing.
“They told me I was highly allergic to mold, that I have an infection in my lungs, that all these symptoms combined with my hives were specifically mold contamination.”
Becerra and her boyfriend also took their dog Bella to the vet when she started losing patches of fur, leaving multiple spots of bare skin.
“From what we have talked to the vet, due to her having allergic reactions to having exposure to mold as well,” Becerra said. “She’s healing, now that we’re out of that apartment. She’s doing better.”
The couple technically broke the lease because Becerra said the property management office wanted her to sign a document saying she wouldn’t pursue legal action.
“Within a month our whole life was turned upside down, and we just knew we had to get out of there,” Becerra. “That needs to be addressed, because we wasted a lot of money living there, and not only that, but it affected our health.”
FOX4 spoke with the property manager on the phone Monday afternoon. She promised a return call from a regional manager but as of Monday night, there was no further communication.