IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM FAMILY IN DELANO

I read a news story this morning that a beautiful 17 year old girl passed away over Thanksgiving in Delano from Carbon Monoxide poisoning. Jenna died on November 27th from carbon monoxide poisoning after a family gathering over the Thanksgiving weekend spent with her mother, brother and grandmother.

Bringmethenews.com said that Jenna had went to the basement to sleep because her dog was snoring too loudly. When her family woke up around 7 the next day, they were all sick from carbon monoxide poisoning, but Jenna had already passed away.

Her family wanted to urge people to check their carbon monoxide detectors in their homes. I think we may need to take it a step further, and explain what happens if you are experiencing CO Poisoning.

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HOW TO KNOW IF CARBON MONOXIDE IS PRESENT

Carbon Monoxide has no fumes and no color, which is why it's called "The Silent Killer." The best way to alert your family of unsafe levels of CO is to install CO detectors in your home. They work like smoke alarms, and sample the air in your home. If they are working properly, they will create a loud alarm when levels of CO are detected.

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR CO ALARM GOES OFF

Many people don't understand what they need to do if the CO alarm goes off. It is often though that it's the fire alarm.  While there is no risk of explosion from CO as there would be with natural gas, the effects of CO in your blood are accumulative, so the longer you are exposed to CO, the longer it takes to rid your body of it.

SYMPTOMS TO WATCH OUT FOR

If you are feeling ill with headaches, fatigue, and nausea, you may have a mild exposure that needs to be looked into. The bad thing is; these symptoms are easily overlooked because people think they have the flu.

A medium exposure to CO causes people to experience throbbing headaches, drowsiness, disorientation and an accelerated heart rate.

Extreme exposure can lead to unconsciousness, cardiorespiratory failure, convulsions, coma and eventually death.

WAYS TO PROTECT YOURSELF AND YOUR FAMILY FROM CO POISONING

Garage: Never start your car in the garage. Always back your car out of the garage if you are going to let it warm up. Never run lawnmowers, snowblowers, or other gas powered engines in garages or sheds, and never use ovens or grills to heat your home or garage.

Car Accidents: If you've had any kind of accident with your vehicle, it's important that you get your vehicle checked. Minor collisions can still cause breaks in your cars exhaust system allowing CO to enter into your passenger area of the vehicle.

Stuck on the side of the road: If you get stuck in deep snow by the side of the road and decide to stay in your vehicle with your vehicle running, make sure to clear the snow away from your exhaust pipe. If your exhaust pipe is blocked, it can cause CO to back up into your passenger area.

Your Home: 

  • Never use ovens, grills, or camp stoves to heat your home.
  • Install CO Detectors on every level of your home.
  • Replace old faulty central heating and air conditioning units with new improved models.
  • Make sure trained professionals instal your heating and air conditioning systems properly.
  • Maintain your heating and air conditioning system regularly, usually just before each big season change.

TREATING CO POISONING

Treating CO Poisoning requires high doses of oxygen. For more information on the information in this story, click HERE now.

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