Mike Saewitz
The Virginian-Pilot
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Two lawsuits connected to the distribution of Chinese-made drywall were filed in Hampton Roads this week, the first of several expected as concerns grow among local homeowners.
A couple filed suit Tuesday in Virginia Beach against their builder, a Chesapeake contractor, and Venture Supply Inc., the firm that says it imported 100,000 sheets of drywall in 2006 - enough to build more than 300 homes.
Benjamin and Holly Proto bought their Virginia Beach property from residential developer The Futura Group LLC, which built the home in early 2006 as part of the Grandy Pointe development. The couple is seeking more than $600,000 for damage allegedly caused by the Chinese drywall, which officials say could be emitting gas and corroding household electrical systems.
On Thursday, an insurance company filed a dispute in federal district court in Norfolk against a Virginia Beach developer over claims related to Chinese drywall.
While it is unclear how much of it was used in the area, the Virginia lawsuits and inspections will help address questions over whether the drywall poses any health risk and who will be responsible for paying to fix the problem in homes.
So far, The Dragas Cos. is the only local developer to say it is inspecting homes suspected of containing the imported drywall. Dragas has said it would pay to fix homes found to have Chinese drywall.
In the lawsuit filed Thursday, Dragas' insurer revealed it had denied coverage for a Chinese drywall claim in early April. That insurer, Builders Mutual Insurance Co., wants a federal judge to decide who's responsible for any fixes related to Chinese drywall claims in the Dragas homes. Two other insurance companies are named as defendants, including the insurer for the Norfolk company that installed the imported drywall in the Dragas homes.
A Dragas spokeswoman said the company does not comment on pending litigation.
The lawsuits were filed as efforts continue to learn just how much of the drywall was used in Hampton Roads. Builders in several states turned to it as U.S.-made wallboard became scarce during the housing boom.
On Friday, officials with the Virginia Beach Department of Public Health visited the home of Colleen Nguyen because of concerns over the Chinese drywall in her five-bedroom house off Little Neck Road. Nguyen has been living with her family in a trailer in her driveway for the past week.
"We're fact-finding," said Erin Sutton, environmental health manager for the Beach health department. The officials snapped photos of corroded wires behind electrical outlets and pipes in her attic.
Both Sutton and officials with the Chesapeake Health Department said they haven't gotten a lot of calls about Chinese drywall, and added that the issue hasn't gotten as much attention yet in Virginia as it has in Florida.
"It's such an unknown right now," Sutton said. "We're trying to get as much information as we can."
Mike Saewitz, (757) 222-5207, mike.saewitz@pilotonline.com
Josh Brown, (757) 446-2318, josh.brown@pilotonline.com
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To "families with chinese
To "families with chinese drywall": don't count on anyone in government helping out. They are the ones who happily allowed this disaster to be brought to you with no safety net (that is inspection of what comes through the shipping lanes) in the interest of the burgeoning global economy. You see, their position is that you do not yet pay enough for anything that you buy, and repairs are a must to keep the $$ flowing. That is why they do not promote the sale of any quality product to or by the US anymore, because we have money to literally burn. Your comfort and convenience of home? A non-issue. They would also have us all driving American vehicles, subject to frequent, unpredictable, and costly breakdown on our already hazardous byways. adding to the everpresent threat of deadly danger. The peril this invokes, also a non-issue. Just gotta keep the money flowing into the hands of the corrupt, by the corrupt, and the public be damned.
Families with Chinese drywall
We are hoping to organize a group of homeowners in the Hampton Road Area that have the chinese drywall in their homes. Please write to me at chinesedrywall_1@yahoo.com. In order to get the government of Virginia more involved we need to be an organized group! Please write!
Continued..
At this point we are being told that it will be 90 days before we hear any answers. Are we suppose to continue living in these homes that the insurance companies have now denied coverage on. Are we suppose to live with little children, in borrowed trailers in our driveways for 90 days.
Some answers need to come long before the 90 days!
Families with Chinese Drywall
Once again great coverage by the pilot on this horrific topic that is affecting so many families.
My only comments go to our local officials and federal government officials. Where is the aid for all these families living in this disaster. Coordinated government leadership is needed to come up with a plan to resolve this issue due to its national impact. As single individuals we do not have the expertise to address the emission of corrosive gases or the remediation of this issue. Until this event, we had a home, an affordable mortgage and have not needed government assistance, but this issue has exhausted our capability to resolve this individually!
This situation is no longer an individual issue but a national health issue and a national economic issue. We look for elected local, state, and national officials to pull their collected resources to devise a national plan that can give us direction and support. We homeowners need to get aid in some way to get us out of these unsafe homes, whether unsafe for our health or just the fact that they are unsafe to live in! We have been told that the integrity of our fire and carbon monoxide systems can no longer be guaranteed.
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