By Casey McNerthney
The Seattle Post Intelligencer
Copyright 2007 Seattle Post-Intelligencer
KENT, Wash. — Kent firefighters pulled two children and their father from a home that contained extremely high levels of carbon monoxide Monday, and the King County Sheriff’s Office is investigating.
The three were rushed to a local hospital, but their injuries were not life threatening, Kent Fire Department spokesman Kyle Ohashi said.
Firefighters responded about 3:30 p.m. to the report of a child having seizures, sheriff’s spokesman Bob Conners said. The house had a strong odor from exhaust fumes and the three people were barely conscious, Ohashi said.
After paramedics treated the people outside, the Kent Hazardous Materials Response Team took air samples and found carbon monoxide - a colorless, odorless gas. When firefighters arrived, an SUV was running in an attached garage with the exterior garage door closed, police said.
“There were some suspicious circumstances that didn’t quite add up,” Conner said of the event, which occurred in the 13000 block of Southeast 209th Street. “It was probably an unfortunate accident, but we’re investigating.”
Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning are similar to the flu, and include headache and nausea.