Tips to avoid Carbon Monoxide poisoning

Tiffany Wismer
·1 min read

(COLORADO SPRINGS) — During the colder months, there is a higher risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. A silent killer, the colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas is related to home heating systems.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning claims nearly 400 lives and causes more than 20,000 visits to hospital emergency departments each year. American Medical Response (AMR) has some tips for staying safe.

  • Check home heating systems, chimneys, and vents, and have them serviced annually

  • Do not use portable generators within the home, even if doors and windows remain open

  • If you are going to use a generator, use it outside, far away from the house

  • Do not bring charcoal grills inside the home for heating or cooking

  • Never use a gas range or oven for heating

  • Open your fireplace damper before you light a fire, and keep it open until ashes are cool

  • Install battery-operated CO alarms outside all sleeping areas

RELATED: Faulty furnace, carbon monoxide leak nearly kills Colorado family

“Many people write off the symptoms of CO poisoning as the flu. It is important to make sure your furnace is checked out by a professional yearly,” said Andrea Yousef, operations manager for AMR.

CO poisoning symptoms include headache, fatigue, shortness of breath, nausea, and dizziness. More severe symptoms, such as mental confusion, vomiting, loss of muscular coordination, or loss of consciousness indicate a high level of poisoning. Symptoms become more severe with increased exposure to the gas and can lead to death if untreated.

If you believe that you or someone in your household is suffering from CO poisoning, leave the house and get fresh air immediately. Call 911 from a phone outside the home, and go to the ER. Tell them you believe you may be suffering from CO poisoning.

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