Plymouth, MA — Four kids and two adults were taken to the hospital Tuesday morning after a carbon monoxide incident in a Plymouth home. It happened around 7:15 a.m. on Kings Plain Road.
According to the Plymouth Fire Department, three children and two adults at the house were transported to Beth Israel Deaconness Hospital. A third adult who was present declined medical treatment. A fourth childen who had gone to school before firefighters arrived was then taken to a local hospital as well.
A malfunctioning furnace in the basement was the source of the carbon monoxide, the fire department said. It was shut off and the home was ventilated for about an hour.
The house had one outdated carbon monoxide detector and smoke alarms from 1999. Both didn’t go off until after firefighters arrived, likely due to their age.
Everyone has since been released from the hospital.
Fire Chief Edward Bradley reminded residents of important carbon monoxide safety tips:
- If your carbon monoxide detector is sounding, call 911 immediately.
- Have your heating system, water heater and any other gas or coal-burning appliances serviced by a qualified technician every year.
- Do not use portable flameless chemical heaters indoors.
- Never use a generator inside your home, basement or garage or less than 20 feet from any window, door or vent; fatal levels of carbon monoxide can be produced in just minutes.
- Have your chimney checked and cleaned every year, and make sure your fireplace damper is open before lighting a fire and well after the fire is extinguished.
- Make sure your gas appliances are vented properly.
- Never use your oven for heating your home.
- Never let a car idle in the garage.