Carbon Monoxide--please check your detectors

[golfgal]

Woman dies, 7 poisoned by carbon
monoxide in Minn.

Associated Press

Last update: January 31, 2010 - 8:11 AM

FROHN, Minn. - A 50-year-old woman is
dead and seven people were injured from
apparent carbon monoxide exposure in
northern Minnesota.

http://www.startribune.com/local/83164477.html


This was in the paper today--the story goes on to say that one of the girls had been complaining of a headache and nausea for several days. From what I have been told, carbon monoxide detectors only are good for 7 years so if you have old ones, time to replace them too.

 

[ncmickeyluvr]

That's horrible. Exactly why I just had DH check ours on Friday. With bad weather coming in this weekend, we weren't sure if it was going to be snow or ice....thankfully it was just snow. If we had lost power, we would have used our gas fireplace. I made sure to have DH check everything out and make sure the battery backup was working.

 

[kpm76]

Thanks for the reminder! My sister just had a CO leak in her house and she's 30 weeks pregnant. Scary stuff but thank God she and the baby are fine

 

[decaff38]

I live here and work with one of the people who is seriously poisoned. Have not heard an update yet. He is in my thoughts. Have your furnace checked out every fall, change your filters every month in the winter and yes check those CO detectors. Especially if you have a fireplace or woodburning stove.

 

[TheBigBadWolf]

We awoke Friday morning to the sound of our carbon monoxide detector going off. We had lost electricity Thursday due to an ice storm, and were running a generator outside our home for power. The generator was a good distance from our house, but located on a wrap around porch (it was raining). Carbon monoxide was able to leak into our home. Very scary! We are very grateful our CO alarm alerted us to the problem before we were poisoned!

OP, thank you for the tip about the CO detectors needing to be replaced every seven years. Our house is nine years old and I'm sure our alarm is original to the house. I had planned on buying two more alarms after this scare we had Friday, and now I will replace the old one too.

 

[antmaril]

The carbon monoxide detector in my basement went off on Friday afternoon. We have a newer one in the family room and it was fine, so I thought we were okay. However, it made me nervous so I called 911. The FD came and, thankfully, there was no leak, but they told me the alarm in the basement was 9 years old and needed to be replaced. I went to Lowe's after they left and bought a new carbon monoxide detector and a new smoke alarm. Better to be safe than sorry.