Charleston County, SC – Medical officials are warning the public against using gas generators without proper ventilation after six people contracted severe carbon monoxide poisoning doing so in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew.
Two families, a family of four from Charleston County and two relatives from Berkeley County, are being treated at Roper Hospital for severe carbon monoxide poisoning in the hospital’s hyperbaric chamber. Both adults and children are among the ill.
The treatment involves both displacing carbon monoxide from the bloodstream and treating the individuals in hopes of preventing brain damage as a result of the exposure.
Both families were using gas generators in their garages after Hurricane Matthew. The garage doors were shut in both instances, allowing carbon monoxide to seep into the home, said Dr. Lance Davis, medical director of the Roper St. Francis Hyperbaric Oxygen and Undersea Medicine Center.
In both cases, family members reported feeling ill and overcome with nausea. They were able to seek emergency treatment. Six others have sought treatment for low levels of exposure as well at the Roper system.
Davis said those who showed severed symptoms are now stable and feeling well.
Andy Lyons, Roper Hospital spokesman, said federal health privacy laws preclude the hospital from divulging further information about the patients.
Davis said these cases show the importance of having homes properly ventilated with open doors and windows when using gas generators and charcoal grills.
Ventilate. Ventilate. Ventilate, he said.
More cases could end up taxing the resources at Roper’s hyperbaric chamber, the only level-one emergency chamber in this part of the state. The next closest facility is in Columbia.
If we get more today, that is going to tax our resources, Davis said.
The exposure is potentially life-threatening and poses the risk of brain dysfunction similar to dementia if not properly treated.
Of the four deaths in Florida due to Hurricane Matthew, Davis believes two were related to carbon monoxide exposure.