Columbus, OH – It’s time to set the clocks back an hour this weekend. And fire departments will say time to replace the batteries in household smoke detectors.
Now state officials are urging consumers to take two extra steps: Buy a carbon monoxide detector, or if you have one, change the battery. And have a qualified heating company check household heating equipment.
The Ohio Department of Health this week issued a bulletin warning that this October hospital emergency room visits for carbon monoxide poisoning were running above normal.
Carbon monoxide poisoning cases typically increase in winter months when people turn on their furnaces for the first time, the agency noted.
Nationally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that annually more than 20,000 Americans seek help for suspected CO poisoning, more than 4,000 are hospitalized, and more than 400 die.
Fatality is highest among the elderly, the CDC has found.
Carbon monoxide has no odor and is colorless. When inhaled, the gas displaces oxygen in the blood stream, slowly damaging tissues and asphyxiating its victims.
Symptoms include headaches, drowsiness, weakness, nausea, vomiting, chest pain and confusion. People who are asleep or intoxicated can die from carbon monoxide without having any of the typical symptoms.
In addition to household gas, oil, propane and coal furnaces, gas ranges and ovens, gas dryers, gas or kerosene space heaters, fireplaces, and wood stoves can produce carbon monoxide. Car engines, especially in older cars, can produce the gas.
Portable power generators also produce carbon monoxide, far more than most automobiles.
A National Institute of Standards and Technology test found that carbon monoxide could find its way into a home and build up to a fatal concentration even if the generator were placed as far as 15 feet away from an open window or door.
Prices of carbon monoxide detectors have fallen in recent years and are now as low as $20 to $30, a check with several retailers shows.