Carbon Monoxide — The Silent Killer
The winter months are on the way. As the mercury begins to dip, some families, struggling to pay their heating bills, will turn on the kitchen stove burners and the oven in an effort to take the chill off of their home. What these families don’t realize is how dangerous this practice can be. A gas oven or range top should never be used for heating. A fire could start and poisonous carbon monoxide (CO) fumes could fill the home. Any fuel-burning heating equipment (fireplaces, furnaces, water heaters, space or portable heaters), generators and chimneys can produce carbon monoxide.
According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) there is an increased risk of dying in a home fire during the winter season. December, January and February are generally the deadliest months for fire.
Also, hundreds of people die each year from unintentional CO poisoning. Fire departments responded to an estimated 61,000 CO incidents in 2005, a 9% increase from 2004. (This excludes incidents where a fire was present.) Close to 90% of CO incidents occur in the home.
Often called a silent killer, CO is an invisible, odorless, colorless gas created when fuels, such as gasoline, wood, coal, natural gas, propane, oil and methane, burn incompletely.
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.
Everyone is at risk for CO poisoning, but infants, pregnant women and people with physical conditions that limit their ability to use oxygen, such as emphysema, asthma or heart disease, can be more severely affected by low concentrations of CO than healthy adults. High levels of CO can be fatal for anyone, causing death within minutes.
The goal of the Haw River Fire Department is to reduce the number of carbon monoxide incidents and discourage anyone from using the range or oven to heat their home. Install CO alarms inside your home to provide early warning of accumulating CO. Have your heating equipment inspected by a professional every year before cold weather sets in.
- CO alarms are not substitutes for smoke alarms. Know the difference between the sound of smoke alarms and CO alarms.
- Test CO alarms at least once a month.
- If your CO alarm sounds, immediately move to a fresh air location and call for help. Remain at the fresh air location until emergency personnel say it is okay.
- If the audible trouble signal sounds, check for low batteries or other trouble indicators.
The Haw River Fire Department wants everyone to be warm and safe this winter. Make sure your home has carbon monoxide alarms.
Heating Safety
It’s a cold winter night. You decide to use a space heater, or perhaps light a fire in the fireplace, to save on the heating bill. Comfortable from its warmth as bedtime approaches you think, “What harm could it cause to leave it on overnight?”
Think again. While these heating devices may help you feel cozy and warm, they can become extremely dangerous if not used properly. Home heating equipment was involved in an estimated 62,000 home fires in 2005, according to the non-profit National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). The cost of these fires is more than just property damage. The cost includes roughly 700 lives and roughly 1,500 injuries.
Home heating fires are largely preventable when you know the rules. Haw River Fire Department’s goal is to reduce the number of home-heating fires in our community. But we need your help. We are urging everyone to use extra caution this winter when heating your home.
The majority of heating fire deaths is caused by space heaters! Most heating fires are caused by creosote build-up in the chimney.
To help keep our community safe and warm this season, Haw River Fire Departmentrecommends that you follow these guidelines:
· Space heaters need space. Keep all things that can burn, such as paper, bedding or furniture, at least 3 feet away from heating equipment.
· Turn portable heaters off when you go to bed or leave the room.
· Plug power cords only into outlets with sufficient capacity and never into an extension cord.
· Inspect for cracked, frayed or broken plugs or loose connections. Replace before using.
· Have your chimney inspected each year and cleaned if necessary.
· Use a sturdy fireplace screen.
· Allow ashes to cool before disposing. Dispose of ashes in a metal container.
· Install smoke alarms in every bedroom, outside each sleeping area and on every level of the home. For the best protection interconnect all smoke alarms throughout the home — when one sounds, they all sound. Test smoke alarms at least once a month.
· Install and maintain a carbon monoxide alarm in a central location outside each sleeping area.
· Never use an oven to heat your home.
· For fuel assistance, contact the National Fuel Funds Network at 1-202-824-0660.
With simple precautions, help us meet our goal of decreasing home-heating fires this winter