Device is now mandatory

By Ken Lewis
Juneau Empire

JUNEAU, Alaska — You can't see it. You can't smell it. But potentially fatal carbon monoxide may be seeping out of the appliances that keep many Juneau residents warm.

Since Jan. 1, 2005, state law has required carbon monoxide alarms in houses and apartments with carbon-based fuel appliances, such as furnaces, fireplaces, wood stoves and water heaters. This year, the law will be fine-tuned and is being written into state safety codes.

The codes will be clearer than the current law and will detail what kind of homes are required to have the detectors, according to Mahlon Greene, a spokesman for the Alaska Division of Fire Prevention.

Full Story: State lays down law on carbon monoxide alarms