Carbon monoxide law

The Wellington County OPP remind residents carbon monoxide is an odorless, colourless gas created when fuels (gasoline, wood, coal, natural gas, propane, oil, charcoal and methane) burn incompletely.

In the home, heating and cooking equipment that burn fuel can be sources.

Mapleton Fire Rescue Chief Rick Richardson said, “The Hawkins-Gignac Act passed by the provincial government makes carbon monoxide detectors the law for residences in Ontario.”

Some effects of leaks are:

- Headache, nausea, burning eyes, fainting, confusion, drowsiness. Those are often mistaken for common ailments.

- Symptoms improve when away from the home for a period of time.

- Symptoms are experienced by more than one member of the household.

- Continued exposure to higher levels may result in unconsciousness, brain damage and death.

- Elderly, children and people with heart or respiratory conditions may be particularly sensitive to carbon monoxide.

Follow these tips:

Do not use a generator inside homes, garages, crawl spaces, sheds, even when using fans or opening doors and windows for ventilation.

Deadly levels of carbon monoxide can quickly build up there and can linger for hours, even with the generator off.

Install battery-operated CO alarms or plug-in CO alarms with battery back-up.

Never leave a car engine running in a garage - even if the garage door is open. During and after a snowstorm, make sure vents for the dryer, furnace, stove, and fireplace are clear.

On hearing an alarm, leave the house, call the fire department and get fresh air at once.