Sen. Bill Nelson is warming up his fight against the Chinese drywall that’s plagued the lives and homes of residents in the Coral Lakes neighborhood in Cape Coral.
Nelson toured the home of Sonny and Joyce Dowdy today, getting a first-hand look at the damages caused by the alleged faulty drywall. The Dowdys were the first Coral Lakes residents to bring attention to the situation.
“I could smell that pungent smell,” Nelson said of his initial impression of the Dowdys’ home. “In the fresh air you’re good, but when you go in there, it hits you.”
The visit to the Dowdys’ home is the first stop in a multiple city tour for Nelson, that also includes Port Charlotte and West Palm Beach.
Nelson said there are potentially 60,000 homes throughout Florida and Louisiana that have been built using the Chinese drywall.
He’s also calling for the resignation of the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Chairwoman Nancy Nord. The CPSC regulates the manufacture and sale of more than 15,000 consumer products.
“When it comes to the government not protecting consumers, that’s when I swing into action,” the senator said. “It’s time to take a much more active and vigorous role … who is the responsible party? We need to determine that.”