Madison, WI- A North Side apartment building was evacuated Friday night because of high level readings of carbon monoxide caused by a tenant cooking in a basement with a propane grill.
No one was injured.
The Madison Fire Department said the carbon monoxide incident happened at about 6:30 p.m. Friday at the apartment building on Kennedy Heights.
“When firefighters arrived they found the family from apartment 161 waiting outside,” said spokeswoman Bernadette Galvez. “Crews went into the basement and heard the carbon monoxide alarm.”
A gas monitor used by the crew showed a reading of 59 parts per million in the basement. That level can cause impaired vision, headache and nausea.
The building was evacuated.
“Firefighters then entered the basement of apartment 162, where the reading was 85 ppm,” Galvez said.
The building was ventilated and new readings were taken by firefighters before the families were allowed back into their homes.
“The cause of the high carbon monoxide readings was the result of an occupant in apartment 162 cooking in the basement with a propane-fueled grill,” Galvez said.