Three Workers 'Lucky' After CO Exposure
An East Hampton fire chief found "dangerous levels" of carbon monoxide in a house where three men were working Wednesday morning.
Tom Bock, the East Hampton Fire Department's second assistant chief, said an automatic carbon monoxide alarm sounded in the basement at 166 Buckskill Road. While he was responding, a caretaker called the security company and said that even though he wasn't at the house, there were workers on scene and everything was fine. "I thought 'We better check this out anyway.' " Mr. Bock said.
When he went into the house, he got a reading of 135 to 140 parts per million on his CO meter while he was standing at the top of the basement stairs. A toxic gas, carbon monoxide is odorless. A reading of over 70 parts per million can cause headaches, fatigue, and nausea.
Mr. Bock yelled downstairs to the workers, who had been using a gas-powered K12 saw to cut through the cement floor, telling them that they had to get out, and he called for an engine and a rescue truck, as well as the East Hampton Volunteer Ambulance Association just before 11 a.m.
Before entering the house to bring in fans to ventilate the basement, firefighters donned air packs . By the time they went downstairs, the reading in the basement was 115, the chief said. No windows were open as the men worked. The men told the chief they felt fine, but emergency medical technicians still assessed them. No one was transported to the hospital.
"They could have had all three guys on the ground," Mr. Bock said of the situation. "Luckily, no body got hurt."
Reactions to CO exposure depend on the concentration and length of exposure, and can vary person to person, according to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission. Symptoms of CO poisoning include headache, fatigue, shortness of breath, nausea, dizziness. Mental confusion, vomiting, loss of consciousness, and ultimately death result in a high level of CO poisoning.
Firefighters and E.M.S. personnel left the scene 45 minutes later.