Calgary Fire Department encourages CO detectors after series of incidents this week

Calgary's fire department is putting out a call to Calgarians to monitor their homes for carbon monoxide, as the recent drop in temperature has led to a busy week of carbon monoxide incidents for fire crews to respond to.

On Friday, the Calgary Fire Department (CFD) received a call reporting a gas smell in a seniors' complex in the Millrise neighbourhood. When crews arrived, they found dangerously high levels of carbon monoxide in the building, resulting from ice and snow blocking the fresh air intake for the building's boiler.

The incident came a day after the department responded to five carbon monoxide calls. In one case, fire crews responded to a building where carbon monoxide alarms in multiple units had been triggered, but only one resident called it in.

In another incident on Thursday, fire crews responded to a carbon monoxide concern at a business in the city's southeast Foothills neighbourhood, because workers in a neighbouring business reported feeling sick and smelling natural gas. Fire crews soon found a gas stove without proper ventilation and reported the incident to a safety codes officer.

The series of calls led the fire department to remind Calgarians to install carbon monoxide alarms in their homes, test them regularly, and call fire crews if they go off. The main source of CO gas is usually a furnace, but other household appliances that run on fossil fuels like natural gas and propane also need to be monitored. 

"Even if you live in a multi-residential building, have a carbon monoxide alarm inside your unit," CFD public information officer Carol Henke said. 

The busy slate of carbon monoxide calls is typical for each winter. As the weather gets colder, appliances that run on burning fuels work harder and can release carbon monoxide if there are issues with the appliance malfunctioning, or with its venting or installation and maintenance.

Henke added that Calgarians should ensure all of their gas-burning appliances are maintained and inspected annually, that their cars aren't left running inside their garage, and ensure wood-burning fireplaces have a fresh air intake that's cleaned annually.

Carbon monoxide exposure can lead to flu-like symptoms, and the fire department advised that potential warning signs of the gas include stale or stuffy air, moisture on windows and walls, and soot build-up around appliances and vents. Henke warmed that high levels can quickly be dangerous.

"If you have, for example, 800 parts per million, you will feel those effects in about half an hour to an hour, and it can be fatal in one to two hours," Henke said.

The fire department confirmed no injuries were reported in any of the recent carbon monoxide calls, although they recorded 710 ppm in a northeast school's boiler room.

Henke added homes should have a carbon monoxide alarm on every level, especially near bedrooms. Earlier this year, Edmontonians called for changes to the province's building code to mandate alarms in all residences after they had a CO scare.

Dropping temperature raises CO calls

The recent cold snap has made ATCO service operator Adrian Kubitza busier responding to calls about carbon monoxide. This is because appliances are on overdrive to keep up with heating demands when the temperature drops, Kubitza said.

"If [an appliance] was just on the cusp of starting to malfunction, it really starts to show when it's being stressed because it's constantly running. So that's when we really start to see these malfunctions," Kubitza said.

Snow building up around appliances' exhausts and intakes can also cause them to quit or malfunction, leading to carbon monoxide spreading into a home. 

"I always recommend when you have this kind of weather to just go out and take a quick look. If there's any buildup of snow, knock it out," Kubitza said.