By Elizabeth Benton
New Haven Register
Copyright 2007 New Haven
New Haven Register (Connecticut)
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News
ANSONIA, Conn. — Four police officers were treated at a hospital Tuesday after being exposed to high levels of deadly carbon monoxide while rescuing an unconscious woman and a semiconscious woman from a Sixth Street home.
Police received a 911 call around 6:20 a.m. Tuesday from a female caller reporting a gas leak and asking for help.
Officers responded to the house and found a 41-year-old woman and her 17-year-old daughter on the porch having trouble breathing.
Officers Alex Barreira and Angela Vazquez went into the house and found a semiconscious 35-year-old woman near the front door and helped her outside. The officers also carried out a 28-yearold unconscious woman.
While those officers cared for the victims, Sgt. Christopher Flynn and Officer Mustafa Salahuddin went into the house to search for more people. None were found, police said.
The four women were taken to Griffin Hospital and were treated for respiratory problems related to carbon monoxide poisoning, which is potentially fatal. They were released from the hospital Tuesday. Police did not release the women’s names.
The three officers and sergeant were also treated at Griffin for carbon monoxide poisoning symptoms, including headaches, sore throats, coughing and dizziness. They were released Tuesday.
Fire Marshal Ralph Tingley said the poisonous gas was released into the house by a car accidentally left running all night in the garage. No carbon monoxide detector was found in the house.
Carbon monoxide levels in the house were measured at 500 to 1,000 parts per million, depending on which part of the house, Tingley said. Anything above 10 parts per million is considered unsafe, he said. Parts per million in this case refers to the number of carbon monoxide molecules in a million molecules of air.
“It doesn’t take too long for carbon monoxide to build up to levels where it could hurt you,” he said.
Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include dizziness, headaches, vomiting and confusion, Tingley said.
The house was safe by the time officials left the scene, Tingley said.