Severn, MD – Three men poisoned by carbon monoxide are in area hospitals in serious condition after they worked for hours in an unventilated basement with gas-powered tools. Anne Arundel County Fire officials say the medical emergency call was made shortly before 4 p.m. Thursday at a residence in the 100 block of Lillian Avenue in Severn.
Firefighters found three men with symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning. One of the patients, a 50-year-old man, was taken to the Center for Hyperbaric Medicine at the R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center with serious symptoms. A 42-year-old man and a 31-year-old man were taken to Baltimore Washington Medical Center, also with serious symptoms.
Firefighters searched the residence to ensure that all of the occupants were out of the house. While searching, they found carbon monoxide levels in excess of 1000 parts per million in the basement. Levels above 800 ppm can cause nausea, headache and dizziness after 45 minutes, fire officials said. After one hour of exposure, a victim can become unconscious and death can occur after two to three hours of exposure.
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.