2 Adults, 3 Children Treated For Carbon Monoxide Exposure

WEST RIVER, MD — Five people were taken to the hospital for treatment after they were sickened by harmful levels of carbon monoxide when a furnace malfunctioned in a West River house, authorities said. Two adults and three children under age 10 were taken by Anne Arundel County Fire Department paramedics on Feb. 1 to the R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center for possible treatment at the Center for Hyperbaric Medicine.

The fire department received a call just after 3 p.m. Friday reporting possible carbon monoxide poisoning in the 100 block of Owensville Road in West River. The victims are ages 54, 28, 6, 4 and 3 years old. All were believed to have non-life-threatening injuries, authorities said.

The residents told firefighters they experienced signs and symptoms of carbon monoxide exposure the day before, and their furnace had been malfunctioning. The residents went to a nearby home before firefighters arrived. Emergency crews found carbon monoxide levels consistently in the 400s with the highest reading 536. They shut off the furnace and ventilated the home.

The fire department has said previously that carbon monoxide levels above 800 parts per million can cause headache, nausea, and dizziness after 45 minutes. People exposed to the gas can collapse and lose unconsciousness after one hour, and die from exposure at those levels within two to three hours.

Want more local news? Get the Edgewater Patch newsletter.

Carbon monoxide is often called the invisible killer. It is an odorless, colorless gas created when fuels (such as gasoline, wood, coal, natural gas, propane, oil, and methane) burn incompletely. In the home, heating and cooking equipment that burn fuel can be sources of carbon monoxide.

CO enters the body through breathing. CO poisoning can be confused with flu symptoms, food poisoning, and other illnesses. Some symptoms include shortness of breath, nausea, dizziness, light headedness or headaches. High levels of CO can be fatal, causing death within minutes.

Symptom severity is related to both the CO level and the duration of exposure. For slowly developing residential CO problems, occupants and physicians can mistake mild to moderate CO poisoning symptoms for the flu, which sometimes results in deaths. For rapidly developing, high-level CO exposures (associated with the use of generators in residential spaces), victims can quickly become mentally confused, and can lose muscle control without having first experienced milder symptoms; they will likely die if not rescued.

Carbon monoxide safety tips:

• CO alarms should be installed in a central location outside each sleeping area and on every level of the home and in other locations where required by applicable laws, codes or standards. For the best protection, interconnect all CO alarms throughout the home. When one sounds, they all sound.
• Choose a CO alarm that has the label of a recognized testing laboratory.

• Call your local fire department’s non-emergency number to find out what number to call if the CO alarm sounds.
• Test CO alarms at least once a month; replace them according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
• If the audible trouble signal sounds, check for low batteries. If the battery is low, replace it. If it still sounds, call the fire department.
• If the CO alarm sounds, immediately move to a fresh air location outdoors or by an open window or door. Make sure everyone inside the home is accounted for. Call for help from a fresh air location and stay there until emergency personnel arrive.
• If you need to warm a vehicle, remove it from the garage immediately after starting it. Do not run a vehicle or other fueled engine or motor indoors, even if garage doors are open. Make sure the exhaust pipe of a running vehicle is not covered with snow.
• During and after a snowstorm, make sure vents for the dryer, furnace, stove, and fireplace are clear of snow build-up.
• A generator should be used in a well-ventilated location outdoors away from windows, doors, and vent openings.
• Do not use ovens or stoves to heat your home.
• Do not use charcoal or gas grills inside or operate outdoors near a window where CO fumes could seep in through a window.
• Keep chimneys clear of animal nests, leaves and residue to ensure proper venting. Have all fireplaces cleaned and inspected by a licensed professional annually.
• Have a licensed professional inspect heating systems and other fuel-burning appliances annually.
• Have qualified professionals install fuel-burning appliances and operate according to the manufacturer's instructions.
• Open the fireplace damper before lighting a fire, and keep it open until the ashes are cool to avert the buildup of carbon monoxide, especially at night while families sleep.

Image via Shutterstock