Carbon Monoxide Leaks Plague Other Hotels

The carbon monoxide leak at the Embassy Suites San Francisco Airport hotel in Burlingame is just one of many that have injured 170 people and killed eight over the past three years, according to a USA Today investigation.

A man was hospitalized on Nov. 8 after he was found unresponsive in his hotel room, prompting doctors to notify emergency responders after diagnosing carbon monoxide poisoning.

The carbon monoxide was traced to a boiler that feeds the hotel pool and a spa, Central County Fire Authority Chief Don Darnell said. The unit was immediately shut down, and carbon monoxide levels dissipated, he said.

According to the comprehensive USA Today investigation, few states or municipalities require hotels be equipped with carbon monoxide (CO) alarms.

The investigation found no complete statistics on how many guests in America have been treated or died from CO poisoning in hotels, but combed through over 1,000 news accounts and interviewed local fire departments to identify 30 instances of poisoning from 2010 to Nov. 8.

More than 1,300 people were evacuated in the incidents, the investigation found.

To read the full story on USA Today, click here. 

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