Four in home exposed to carbon monoxide

Four people were rescued from a Petaluma home Friday morning after being exposed to high levels of carbon monoxide from a faulty furnace.

Two of the four residents of the St. Anthony Lane home showed symptoms of possible carbon monoxide poisoning, said Petaluma Fire Capt. Jude Prokop. The symptoms included dizziness and nausea.

The residents were treated at Petaluma Valley Hospital, but their names and conditions were not immediately available Friday.

The residents had called Pacific Gas & Electric Co. earlier Friday after apparently smelling gas, Prokop said.

A utility worker arrived at the home and with monitoring equipment detected high levels of carbon monoxide outside the home. The worker immediately called 911 about 10:30 a.m.

A fire engine and two ambulances responded. Firefighters donned breathing apparatuses, entered the home and removed the four occupants.

The utility worker later determined that the home's furnace had been improperly repaired by a resident. The furnace was venting carbon monoxide along with hot air back into the home.

Prokop emphasized humans can't detect the odorless, colorless carbon monoxide without special equipment, such as home monitors similar to smoke alarms. He said residents should have furnaces serviced by properly trained repairmen.

Other common causes of carbon monoxide poisoning are running car engines in closed garages and using kerosene heaters or barbecues inside homes, he said.

— Robert Digitale, The Press Democrat