Stove eyed in deadly gas leak
1 dead, 2 hospitalized in Roslindale incident
Fire officials probing a carbon monoxide leak in Roslindale that left one man dead and two women hospitalized say a faulty stove may have been to blame but the lack of a working carbon monoxide detector contributed to the deadly outcome.
Firefighters and paramedics responding to a 9:47 a.m. report of a medical emergency at a Hyde Park Avenue condo assisted with rushing a man and two women to Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where the man was later pronounced dead and the women were treated for carbon monoxide poisoning, Boston fire spokesman Steve MacDonald said.
None of the victims’ names were released last night and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will determined the man’s cause of death.
After detecting high levels of carbon monoxide inside the unit, MacDonald said authorities quickly evacuated the complex’s other four condos.
Lisa Chin, who lives just a few doors down from the unit where the leak occurred, said she was cleaning her house when her doorbell rang.
“A cop started ringing the doorbell, telling me someone had passed out next door and that I needed to open the windows and doors and ventilate the place,” Chin said.
“As I was doing that, she knocked again and said we have to evacuate.”
Another neighbor, who lives across the street and asked not to be named, said she saw an older woman being loaded into an ambulance in a wheelchair, and another person completely covered with a sheet. She and Chin both said they didn’t know the victims well and said they kept to themselves.
Although MacDonald said a preliminary investigation showed a faulty stove was a source of the carbon monoxide buildup, he said it was still unclear whether it was the only source.
After evacuating all of the residents, MacDonald said fire officials found that none of the units had working carbon monoxide or smoke detectors.
“During the course of the investigation, we found several smoke detectors disconnected, either by removing the batteries or literally disconnecting them from the ceiling,” MacDonald said, adding that tenants won’t be allowed back in until the detectors are installed. Under state law, carbon monoxide detectors must be installed on every floor, and within 10 feet of every bedroom. The building was built relatively recently, and the condos are thought to be owned by the residents, MacDonald said.
“It’s so important to make sure you have working carbon monoxide detectors,” he said.
“They give you an early warning to the presence of carbon monoxide, especially when it’s orderless, colorless, where you really don’t see it coming.”
Chin said she is grateful the leak happened during the day and not in the middle of the night.
“I would have been dead,” she said. “No question.”