Holyoke, MA – The residents of an Oak Street apartment building will be displaced up to three days after they were evacuated Thursday morning due to dangerous carbon monoxide levels.
Holyoke Fire Capt. Anthony Cerruti could not confirm how many residents were being displaced or where they would be relocated to, but attributed the incident to “a crack in the oil fired boiler.”
Members of Holyoke Fire Department arrived at the apartment complex, 274 Oak St., at 5:15 a.m. Thursday.
Responders found elevated levels of carbon monoxide in the air inside, according to Cerruti.
“The building was immediacy evacuated and the Holyoke Gas and Electric Department was called to the scene to assist,” he said in a statement. “As a precaution, the residents were checked for carbon monoxide poisoning. All checked out fine.”
He added, “The boiler was shut down.”
The residents were relocated by the owners of the apartment, who said they planned to replace the boiler. The process will require a little extra time because the boiler was covered in asbestos, Cerruti said.
“This incidents is a great example to have working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in residents at all times,” he added.