HIALEAH, FLA. (WSVN) - Rescue crews transported two adults and two children were transported to the hospital, Friday morning, after, officials said, they were exposed to carbon monoxide.
According to officials, the family was improperly using generators in a poorly ventilated area of their Hialeah home, near Palm Avenue and East 10th Street.
Hialeah Fire Rescue responded to the home at around 5:30 a.m. and found high levels of carbon monoxide upon entering the home. A woman was also found throwing up as a result.
“The mother was the one that noticed because she fainted in the bathroom and vomited,” said neighbor Orlando Socia as he spoke through a translator. “So she noticed it was carbon monoxide. They called rescue, and they took her – her and the two kids. If she wouldn’t have gotten up to vomit, she would’ve died.”
Socia lives across from the family, along Palm Avenue and East 10th Street.
Police said the homeowners had left the back door open with two generators running. Officials said the area was covered by an overhang and was not properly ventilated.
The victims were rushed to Mercy Hospital in unknown condition. “This is the outcome of the situation that our state is going through with the electricity,” said Socia. “There is no power, so people are using their generators.”
Socia added that the man in the home is a very responsible father. “This could happen to anyone,” he said.
The incident happens nearly one week after Hurricane Irma swept through Florida. Dozens of people across the state have suffered from carbon monoxide poisoning after the storm left thousands without power.
At least six deaths have been reported due to the improper use of generators. In Loxahatchee, in Palm Beach County, one woman died and three more people remain in the hospital after carbon monoxide poisoning from an improperly installed generator.
In Miami-Dade County, over 250,000 people are still without power – over 150,000 people in Broward County.
Officials advise that generators are placed outdoors in highly ventilated areas, at least 20 yards from the structure or building. Experts said carbon monoxide is odorless and can become deadly in seconds.
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