Carbon Monoxide Forces Evacuation of Atlantic City Home

Thursday, January 24 2008 @ 05:55 pm EST

Contributed by: CBrining

From the Atlantic City Press published: Thursday, January 24, 2008

By LYNDA COHEN Staff Writer, 609-272-7257

ATLANTIC CITY - A call for an unconscious infant triggered the evacuation of a three-story home with a major carbon-monoxide leak Wednesday, officials said. Emergency medical staff and Fire Department personnel responding to a call in the 100 block of Florida Avenue not only found the unresponsive child - but a carbon-monoxide leak as well, Battalion Chief Michael Mooney said. "It was an extremely high level," he said. "It was 275 parts per million. Our first alarm is 20 parts per million."

The building was evacuated and the five adults and two children inside were taken to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center's City Campus.

"People stated they had been going in and out of consciousness in the building for a couple of days," Mooney said. "It's amazing there weren't seven to 10 dead people in the building. They were very, very fortunate."

Code enforcement was also called. "We've investigated and we will be issuing summonses," said Tim Mooney, director of Neighborhood Services.

The charges range from having the gas heater hooked up improperly to having people in a building without a certificate of occupancy, Tim Mooney said.

There were 14 people living in the home: four on the ground level and 10 in the upper levels, Mooney said.

"It wasn't an overcrowding issue," he added. "We're not going to let them occupy building until they bring it up to code standards."

The building is owned by Shabbir Ahmad, Mooney said.

The Red Cross was also called to relocate the families.

Elwood Fire Rescue
https://www.evfc160.com/main/article.php/20080124115529627