Recent deaths have firefighters ringing alarm over carbon monoxide poisoning

Dangers of carbon monoxide Montreal firefighters are warning the public about the dangers of carbon monoxide following several suspected cases of poisoning.

Montreal — Montreal firefighters are ringing the alarm over the dangers of carbon monoxide following several cases of suspected poisoning from the gas.

Fire department spokesperson Marie-Eve Beausoleil noted that CO especially dangerous because the gas is odourless, colourless and tasteless.

She noted there have been several incidents of CO poisoning in Canada in recent weeks including a 59-year-old woman who died in Laval in an incident that also sent two other people to hospital.

That same day a senior in Ottawa died from CO poisoning and his partner was hospitalized. That couple had reportedly heard their CO detector beeping but removed the batteries because they thought it was broken.

Over Thanksgiving Hollywood actress Anna Faris and her family avoided catastrophe after two family members felt ill and went to hospital. There, they discovered they had been exposed to carbon monoxide at the vacation residence in Lake Tahoe at which they were staying.

“The main cause is either a malfunctioning of your furnace or stove or bad ventilation in your gagarge if you had a car parked and started,” said Beausoleil.

She recommended every home have functioning CO detectors, that batteries be changed every six months and that heating systems be checked before turned on.

“They should really do the maintenance every year of equipment using oil, gas or wood,” she said.

When it comes to vehicles Beausoleil said drivers should clear snow from car exhaust pipes before turning the ignition and that caution be exercised when using automatic starters.

“You have to make sure you don’t keep your remote car starter in your pocket to make sure you don’t start your car by accident in the garage. You should hide it from your children,” she said.