Nine hospitalized for carbon monoxide poisoning from generator after Ida in Louisiana
A generator hospitalized several people in a Louisiana parish following Hurricane Ida, officials say.
St. Tammany Parish Fire Protection said it responded overnight Monday to a call about carbon monoxide poisoning from a generator running in a garage.
Nine people were taken to a hospital after exposure to the carbon monoxide, fire officials say. No other information about the incident has been released as of Tuesday.
Fire officials said Tuesday they also recently responded to an incident in which a person in the area was “flash burned” while refueling a generator.
St. Tammany Parish is in southeastern Louisiana, where Hurricane Ida hit as a Category 4 storm Sunday — bringing extreme winds that reached maximum sustained speeds of 150 mph, catastrophic storm surge, heavy rain and severe flooding.
Ida left hundreds of thousands of Louisiana residents without power, including many in St. Tammany. Officials have said they don’t have a timeline for when power will be restored, according to the Associated Press.
“We urge you to please be careful while using portable generators until power gets restored,” St. Tammany Parish Fire Protection wrote on Facebook.
Officials in other parts of southeastern Louisiana have also responded to generator-related accidents in recent days.
In Harvey, about 56 miles away from St. Tammany Parish, fire officials said a generator running next to a home caught fire Monday night. The blaze spread to two nearby homes, displacing two families.
Fire officials said the blaze broke out because the generator was “too close to the house.”
In Kenner, Louisiana, which is near New Orleans, local outlet WWLTV reports a generator may have sparked an apartment fire on Sunday. The complex was on fire for more than 17 hours before the blaze was extinguished.
Fire officials said they had heard reports that a generator was used in one of the units but those reports have not been confirmed, the station reported.
Generator safety tips
It’s best to use a generator only when necessary and to put it “outdoors and well away from any structure,” according to the U.S. Energy Department.
“Running a generator inside any enclosed or partially enclosed structure can lead to dangerous and often fatal levels of carbon monoxide,” the department said. “Keep generators positioned outside and at least 15 feet away from open windows so exhaust does not enter your home/business or a neighboring home/business.”
Generators also need to be kept dry. The Energy Department said to operate them on dry surfaces under an ”open, canopy-like structure” and to only touch them with dry hands. They should not be used during rainy conditions.
It’s also important to make sure the generator is properly grounded to “prevent shocks and electrocutions.”
When using a generator, disconnect the normal power source in your home, the Energy Department said.
“Otherwise, power from your generator could be sent back into the utility company lines, creating a hazardous situation for utility workers,” it said.
The Energy Department said to plug equipment directly into a generator and to never plug a generator directly into a wall outlet.
“Only a licensed electrician should connect a generator to a main electrical panel by installing the proper equipment according to local electrical codes,” it said.
When refueling a generator, use the type of fuel recommended by the manufacturer and turn it off and let it cool before starting the process, the Energy Department said.
It’s also important to regularly inspect and maintain your generator.
This story was originally published August 31, 2021 at 12:39 PM with the headline "Nine hospitalized for carbon monoxide poisoning from generator after Ida in Louisiana."
