Louisville, Ky. —  The University of Louisville is closing Miller Hall and moving 270 residents because of elevated levels of mold spores in the building. By 6 p.m. today, all students are expected to be relocated to university-affiliated housing or to hotel rooms. All students, and their belongings, are required to be completely evacuated by Oct. 14. The dorm will be closed for the remainder of the fall semester.

Miller Hall, a coed, freshman dormitory with 135 rooms, was built in 1964.

Employees from the university's housing and residence life department and the Department of Environmental Health and Safety discovered mold in a few Miller Hall rooms following a student report in late September. The university hired environmental specialists to inspect the rooms and public areas of traditional residence halls while students were on fall break beginning Oct. 5. The visual inspections and subsequent air sampling found elevated levels of mold spores in many areas of Miller Hall.

The mold spores have been preliminarily identified as aspergillus and penicillium, which are common in the environment. At normal levels, they are not a health hazard for most people but can be irritating and cause problems for people with allergies, asthma, respiratory problems or mold sensitivity, according to the university. However, the levels of mold spores detected in portions of Miller Hall were high, and officials decided to move all students until the building can be completely cleaned and the source of the mold growth found and remediated.