Nearly a dozen people, including seven toddlers, were hospitalized after a carbon monoxide leak at a Maine daycare.
The Kittery Fire Department was called to the Building Blocks Learning Center at approximately 3:19 p.m. ET on Wednesday.
Investigators said staff at the daycare called 911 to report children had headaches and felt nauseous, according to WCVB.
At the time of the leak, 27 children – including some as young as six weeks old – and 10 staff members were present in the day care.
Portsmouth Regional Hospital in New Hampshire confirmed that 11 patients – seven children and four adults – were taken to the hospital in fair condition, reported WMTV.
Seven of the patients were taken to the hospital by ambulance, and four arrived via the hospital’s emergency department.
After testing the air inside the daycare, fire officials said they detected dangerous levels of carbon monoxide.
‘We were seeing over 10 times the amount of acceptable carbon monoxide in the building,’ Kittery Fire Chief Craig Alfis said.
The owner of the building told WCVB he believes construction may have led to the leak and that a subcontractor was inside cutting concrete at one of the commercial spaces in the building.
Maine Fire Marshal Shawn Esler is investigating the cause and said they will determine whether or not a carbon monoxide alarm was inside the daycare.
‘We will find appliances that could emit carbon monoxide and we’ll test each appliance to make sure that they’re safe,’ he said.
Nine of the patients had been discharged from the hospital, by 7:00 p.m., according to the hospital.
A child and adult remained in the emergency department but are expected to be discharged later Wednesday night.
Portsmouth Regional Hospital emergency room doctor Marc Grossman told the local news station he is worried about the younger children who were admitted later on.
‘Any time we are dealing with a pediatric emergency you always get nervous,’ Grossman said.
‘The problem with kids is they can be impacted disproportionately. They breathe faster on a regular basis, lungs are smaller.’
An invisible killer lurking in American homes and businesses, carbon monoxide will send more than 100,000 people to emergency departments across the country.
Once concentrations of the flammable gas exceed roughly 70 parts per million, particularly if a person has been exposed for as few as two hours, certain symptoms of bodily harm will manifest, ranging from dizziness and confusion to lasting neurological damage and even death.
Exposure can cause a myriad of other issues, including visual disturbances and blurred vision to fatigue.
Signs of carbon monoxide poisoning often first present as flu-like symptoms including headache, weakness, upset stomach, and vomiting.
If you suspect a CO leak you should immediately leave the area, safely turn off the source of the leak if possible, call the fire department and visit a doctor.