Loading...
The Citizen, 1990-09-05, Page 27THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 1990. PAGE 25. Colder weather adds danger to boating trip The carbon monoxide poisoning of 10 boaters this summer has prompted the OPP to issue a warning about the dangers of the improper use of alcohol and pro­ pane stoves for heating purposes. Due to the unseasonably cold summer some boaters have utilized fuel-burning cooking stoves as heaters. In unventilated areas be­ low decks these stoves burn up available oxygen and replace it with deadly carbon monoxide. Poisoning by this colourless, odorless and tasteless gas causes death or severe brain damage, long term memory loss, psychiatric dis­ orders and Parkinson Disease-like symptoms. The severity of the poisoning depends upon the con­ centration of the gas and the length of exposure. The 10 people affected this year were poisoned in three separate incidents. Dr. Helge Koch, the director of the Hyperbaric Unit at Toronto General Hospital, where all 10 victims were brought for treat­ ment, said that last summer not a single person was treated for carbon monoxide poisoning as the result of improper use of a stove on board a boat. One chilly night in June, a Sudbury family of five were trying to sleep on board a 25-foot cabin cruiser anchored in Georgian Bay’s North Channel. The parents of three girls, aged 7, 10, and 13, turned on an alcohol stove to warm the sleeping quarters. While the parents slept in the ventilated rear of the boat, their daughters were slowing succumbing to carbon monoxide poisoning below decks. In the morning the parents discovered their children uncon­ scious and unable to be aroused. A frantic “mayday” call on marine band radio alerted other boaters, the Coast Guard in Wiarton and the OPP in Little Current to the crisis. The OPP cruiser W.H. Clarke was dispatched and took the family to land where they were rushed by ambulance to hospital. Fresh air revived the children, however. Upon the completion of hospital tests doctors had the youngsters flown by air ambulance to Toronto and placed in the hyperbaric unit. The chamber forces oxygen into the body while driving out carbon monoxide. All recovered but investigator Prov. Const. Al Boyd of Little Current detachment said doctors who treated the children speculat­ ed if they had been exposed longer they would have died. In a second incident, a mother and her two children sleeping on board a sailboat went to sleep after starting a cooking stove. The mother awoke with a searing headache and started to vomit. Upon waking her children they too had similar symptoms. Four hours later doctors found the two children, a four-year-old boy and his eight-year-old sister, still had dangerously high levels of carbon monoxide in their systems and they too were treated at the hyperbaric unit. Again, prompt medical attention and limited expo­ sure were the deciding factors. “This past holiday weekend marks the transition from summer to the beginning of fall and even cooler night time temperatures. If you are a boater, remember do not use fuel-burning cooking devices for heating purposes. Even brief exposure can cause drowsiness and a lessening of the ability to 1 □Jl'h perceive danger and respond to it,” said S/Sgt. Larry Smith, marine co-ordinator, traffic and marine branch. Enjoy the rest of the boating season safely. Business BLAKE GENERAL LIFE and Septic Tank J. Richard Elliott [519] 523-9725 w R. John Elliott [519] 523-4323 Professional Service | Directory D.&I.Wattam I Construction Ltd. BLYTH Fast Efficient 24 Hour Service CALL RAY 887-6800 ELLIOTT INSURANCE BROKERS LTD.INSURANCE IN ALL BRANCHES Established 1910 BLYTH,ONTARIO N0M1H0 LIVESTOCK MORTALITY INSURANCE 519-523-4481 I •Backhoe & dozer work •Septic systems installed or repaired •Farm & residential tiling •Trenching [Water & hydro lines] •Foundations dug •Landscaping Bill Bromley Electric LONDESBORO PHONE 523-4506 1-800-265-9255 I. D. #3648 Brian Bromley 523-9483 Brad Bromley 523-9308 24 Hour Emergency Service pRRmPOWER®"© a total, reliable fuel service WAYNE JEROME - SALES & SERVICE CHRISTMAS & COUNTRY YOUR FULLSERVICE O FLORIST SERVING BLYTH ANDAREA FLOWERSFOR TkleflOia ALL OCCASIONS BELGRAVE CO-OP 357-2711 or 523-4454 AUBURN CO-OP 526-7262 WIRESERVICE & DELIVERY Hours 9:00-5:30 Mon.-Sat. Phone 523-4820 Stevens DISC JOCKEY SERVICE Country Gold & -/] Rock ‘n’ Roll /I FORTHEFINESTIN RESIDENTIAL BUILDING & RENOVATIONS Dealer in Pella-Huntand Alcan Windows# Doors BUILDERS SINCE 1956 H. TEN PAS CONSTRUCTION LTD. BRUSSELS, ONT. 887-6408 Ward & Uptigrove CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS Listowel—291-3040 Mitchell—348-8412 R.B. Karcher, C.A. C.D. Newell, C.A. R.E. Uptigrove, C.A. B. Haefling, C.A. R.H. Loree,C.A. G.J. Martin, C.A. G.C. MacDonald, C.A. N.M. MacLellan Industrial Commercial Residential & Farm INSURANCE COMPANY AGENTS 451 Erie St. Stratford 273-5757 Music L—oone? Try the CL CLARK & SON Free Estimates 523- •AIR CONDITIONING •PLUMBING •HEATING & ELECTRICAL McKILLOP B& G B & G ELECTRIC BRUSSELS 887-6747 holiday rent-a-car system We have a full lineof CARS-TRUCKS-VANS •WEEKENDRATES AVAILABLE STRICKLANDS 344 Huron Rd., Goderich 524-8311 $24.95 Including 100 km. Free on cars only •12 ft. • .16 ft. .20 ft. Vans Available MUTUAL 91 Main St. South, Seaforth Office 527-0400 FARM,HOME, COMMERCIAL AUTOCOVERAGES Disco, Polkas, Waltzes, New Lazer Disc Music, Good Recorded Music for Weddings, Dances, Anniversaries, Parties, etc. lOyrs. experience * No mileage charge Brussels - 887-6159 Daytime or Evenings Help Spread The Word: LITERACY E AtTT 1 < More than half the I I" I O world's children drop out of school before completing elementary school because they have to earn a living. YOUR ONE-STOP WINDOW& DOORCENTRE • Sales*Service* Installation dBDASHWOOD Window & Door Centre 1196 Wallace Ave. N. Listowel Exeter 291-1612 235-0390 GraemeCraig Bob McNaughton Donald Taylor Banter & Mac Ewan Insurance Brokers Ltd. John Wise Insurance Brokers Ltd. LAWN MAINTENANCE Grass Cutting Fall Clean-up - Reasonable Rates 887-9668 ASK FOR wj.' JEFF i I 482-3401 887-9381 527-1571 482-9976 KAFT 1 T Over half (54%) of mV I" B # all adults in Africa are illiterate. 524-8376 - FREE ESTIMATES R G Renovations •SHEDS-DECKS •DRYWALL-ROOFING ADDITIONS To donate, or for more information contact: The CODE Literacy Foundation 321 Chapel St. Ottawa, .— Ontario KIN 7Z2 (kjA CODt (613)232-3569 Ralph Goetz , Brussels 3 887-9376 CALL CITIZEN BUSINESS DIRECTORY AT 523 4792 OR 887-9114 24^OURS A DAY