MENU
Spokane, WA –
As it gets colder, more people head inside with their windows and doors shut and their furnaces, stoves and fireplaces turned up high.
But Spokane Fire Chief Brian Schaeffer said it’s prime time for carbon monoxide emergencies. In fact, there have been several in Spokane over the last few months.
The most recent incident happened at Luna, a restaurant on the South Hill. Chief Schaeffer said firefighters were called because someone reported feeling sick.
He said firefighters wear CO detectors, and as soon as they walked in, the detectors started going off, which meant the carbon monoxide level was too high.
A woman was taken to the hospital and the restaurant was evacuated.
It turned out the issue was a stove that wasn’t properly ventilating.
KHQ reached out to Luna. They didn’t want to be part of this story, but said the situation has been resolved.
Chief Schaeffer said there’s an easy way to prevent a similar situation from happening in your own home.
“This is the time of year to be proactive and make sure your CO detector is installed correctly, or that it has a battery backup,” Chief Schaeffer said.
He said everyone needs to have a battery-operated carbon monoxide detector on every floor of a home. They’re available on Amazon for less than $15.
It’s also important to note that if you’re renting an AirBnB, make sure to ask about carbon monoxide detectors. A study has showed that while 80 percent of them usually have smoke detectors, less than 50 percent usually have carbon monoxide detectors.
