Arvada Fire Uses Advanced Gas Monitors To Keep Citizens and Responders Safe

In Arvada, Colorado, a 911 call was received from someone who reported that a family member was not feeling well. The caller was not with the family member, but the call went through and Arvada Fire’s EMS responders were dispatched. Fortunately for all involved, Arvada responders were prepared for what awaited them when they arrived at the home. The responders had portable RAE Systems ToxiRAE 3 carbon monoxide (CO) monitors hooked onto their carry-along kit bags, and the units sounded an alarm alerting crew members to high levels of CO just inside the front door. Acting on the alarm, they immediately checked the residents for signs of CO toxicity. As expected, all three adults in the home showed signs of CO poisoning. They were immedi-ately transported to an area hospital for treatment.

The Arvada Fire EMS team, equipped with their RAE Systems CO gas detection monitors, helped save the lives of the residents. At the same time, the monitors protected the first responders from the toxic fumes and life-threatening situation. The dwelling did not have CO monitors installed.

The Arvada Fire Protection District serves some 115,000 citizens in Arvada, which is located within the Denver metropolitan area. The district maintains eight active stations throughout 41 square miles and employs 118 full- and part-time paid personnel and 45 volunteers. Not long before this incident, the department outfitted first responders with ToxiRAE 3 CO monitors.

There’s more To The sTory.

For the first responders, this was the second inci-dent inside a two-week period where the carbon monoxide monitors sounded an early warning.

True Story

“On the second call, the engine got on scene first and noticed the patients, which sent up a red flag and sent the crew back to the truck for their larger four-gas meter, since they did not have a ToxiRAE 3 on their EMS kit,” explains Scott Pribble, public information officer for the Arvada District. “The medics arrived at that time, and both monitors activated before they got inside the front door.”

Carbon monoxide, sometime referred to as “the silent

killer,” is found in many different settings. It results from the incomplete combustion of any type of or-ganic matter, if oxygen is removed and the release of carbon dioxide is prevented. Sources include car exhaust, furnaces, gas-powered engines, water heaters, pool heaters and paint remover, as well as smoke from fires, stoves and even tobacco. The gas is problematic, as it is colorless, odorless

and tasteless, and initial exposure can produce no telling symptoms. Eventual symptoms include headaches, shortness of breath and dizziness. Ingesting it can cause carbon monoxide poisoning, which can lead to death. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6303a6.htm), carbon monoxide poisoning is responsible for some 435 deaths per year in the U.S.; this has trended upward over the past decade. Without proper detection, it’s very difficult to understand why, or how, apparent illness sets in, when CO ingestion is the underlying cause.

“Both calls were dispatched as medicals, and carbon monoxide was not even mentioned,” says Pribble. “On the first call, the crew was responding

on a stroke, and the alarm sounded on the EMS kits as soon as they walked through the front door. If responders did not have the ToxiRAE 3 on their bags when they entered the first scene, they may have become victims themselves.” On that call, the portable alarms showed 400 parts per million (ppm) — a dangerous level. After the victims were removed, the responders went deeper into the house and discovered CO levels of 800 ppm.

“The medics arrived, and both monitors activated before they got inside the front door.”

The gas is ...colorless, odorless and tasteless

“CO... The SilenT KilleR”

It is not uncommon for first respond-ers to be victims of carbon monox-ide. This is something a community in Long Island, New York, recently discovered the hard way. During the very same time frame in which Ar-vada first responders were alerted

to two separate cases of harmful carbon monoxide levels, a restaurant in a Huntington shopping mall reported that the restaurant’s owners and patrons were experiencing symptoms. The restaurant owner died, and several others, including first responders, were taken to a nearby hospital to be treated for carbon monoxide poisoning. Unlike the Arvada first responders, they were not carrying portable monitors.

People die or become ill every day because no means of detecting CO is present or because the installed detectors failed.

In the small community of Arcadia, Wisconsin, 13 people, including five children, two emergency medical technicians and a sheriff’s deputy, were overcome by carbon monoxide poisoning when a charcoal grill was used inside a home. The Arcadia home had a CO detector, but it did not go off.

In Ogunquit, Maine, 21 people at a bed-and-breakfast were treated for CO poisoning. The inn had no detectors, because Maine state law does not require them for older structures unless those buildings have had major renovations.

It is of paramount importance for first responders to know, immediately upon entry, that CO is present, so they have time for egress and proper reaction. But only about 28 states mandate carbon monoxide detectors, and the requirements vary for different scenarios and structures. For example, only Maryland and Connecticut require them in schools. Texas requires them in child and adult day care centers. Other states require them in hotels. Some laws prohibit tampering or

require detectors only in sleeping areas. Other laws apply only to newly built structures or those built after a certain date. New York State, where the restaurant owner died, requires carbon monoxide detectors in residential buildings but not in commercial structures. Since the incident, local politicians have started a movement to require carbon monoxide detectors in commercial establishments, as well.

“ If responders did not have the ToxiRAE 3 on their bags when they entered the first scene, they may have become victims themselves.”

Dispatch Notes: Is Carbon monoxide Present?

Carbon monoxide Poisoning is responsible for some 435 deaths per year. Without proper detection, it’s very difficult to understand why, or how, apparent illness sets in, when Co ingestion is the underlying cause.

!Carbon monoxide is called the “silent killer” for a reason: it’s difficult to detect. For a dispatcher who receives a call where carbon monoxide poisoning may be present, it is not easy to know if carbon monoxide is present. This is a danger to those who make the call, and also to the first responders who will be soon arriving to the scene.

Here are a few early warning sign questions that could help a dispatcher ask or warn that carbon monoxide poisoning may be present:

1. Is dizziness, nausea, vomiting, confusion, headaches reported as symptoms in an environment where any type of open flame or exhaust fumes have been present?

2. Did the caller make any mention of a carbon monoxide detector or alarm sounding?

3. Is anyone else in the house or environment complaining of the same symptoms? Did the symptoms appear at about the same time?

4. Are or were any fuel-burning appliances or devices such as kerosene heaters, chain saws, gas engines or other equipment burning or operating at the time of the report or when symptoms occurred?

5. Do the symptoms lift or disappear when the caller leaves the house or confined space and reappear when they return?

A 2009 Colorado law requiring carbon monoxide detectors in residential facilities was enacted after a number of victims were lost to carbon monoxide poisoning. However, the detector at the Arvada location was on one level of the residence and did not pick up on the concentration of CO throughout the entire home. It was the first responders’ ToxiRAE 3 detector that saved those present.

In Ohio, which does not require CO detectors, an Ohio State University student brought a small CO detector into an apartment she shared with a roommate. The detector signaled dangerous CO levels and saved their lives.

Since the two incidents in Colorado, Arvada Fire has already ordered additional units to make sure that every EMS kit now has a ToxiRAE detector on it. “The Life Safety Division is looking into purchasing some for the inspectors to wear every day as they conduct their business inspections,” says Pribble. “The Life Safety Division is also look-ing into purchasing the [RAE Systems] QRAE 3 for when they are ‘digging out’ a fire while completing their investigation.”

“First responders take safety very seriously,” explains Luke Sloan, with TG Technical Services, a distributor of RAE Systems gas monitors for the western U.S. “Gas detectors are used more today by the fire service than any previous time. In the past, gas detectors were a tool primarily of the HazMat teams.”

In Colorado alone, there have been numerous situations where RAE Systems monitors have been successfully used. According to Sloan, almost all fire departments in the Denver metro area and through-out Colorado deploy RAE Systems monitors at structure fires—pre- and post-extinguishment— as well as on gas leaks, spills, odor investigations, clandestine labs reports and chemical suicide calls. Sloan cites many other western fire departments using RAE Systems portable instruments with great success. “Colorado Springs Fire recently had a suspected clandestine lab where wireless portable units were deployed to ensure the safety of the entry teams,” he says.

It is of paramount importance for first responders to know, immediately upon entry, that CO is present, so they have time for egress and proper reaction.

“ Gas detectors are used more today by the fire service than any previous time.”

GReAT SUCCeSS

“Cheyenne [Wyoming] Fire recently used portable units while investigating

a suspicious package at the local post office. Loveland [Colorado] Fire Rescue spent days after floods using portable monitors checking homes, drums, tanks and cylinders damaged during the floods.”

These examples demonstrate the value and con-tinuing utility that portable CO monitors have, not only for protecting the lives of potential victims, but also the lives of first responders. Because of the transparency of carbon monoxide, its presence and danger cannot be known without sensitive detec-tion equipment. Every day, another incident crops up, so the right tools are important ingredients in the day-to-day safety of first responders.

As emergency service departments continue to outfit their first responders with the best and most reliable equipment, RAE Systems’ portable gas monitors are likely to be widely adopted, particu-larly as national news continues to highlight injury and death from toxins that include CO and other gases, such as methane. Portable monitors are an easy solution to a potentially lethal problem.

“The fact that we have had two saves from these devices in such a short period of time has proven just how important they are,” says Pribble. “They are so small that you don’t even notice them on the EMS bag until they activate. We feel as though the ToxiRAE 3 has allowed us to provide better protection for our employees and better recogni-tion and faster reactions for our citizens from this silent killer.”

summary

Emergency responders need the very best tools to support the safety of the communities in which they serve and the hazards posed by the environ-ments they work in. In specific, gases can be harmful, and even lethal, if not detected early and a warning communicated to affected parties. Because dangerous gases can be transparent and their presence unknown without proper detection, portable monitors are a best defense in keeping with the highest safety standards.

By using RAE Systems monitors, Arvada, Colorado, and their surrounding communities are able to safely respond to incidents where toxic gases may be present, but not apparent. RAE Systems monitors help minimize safety incidents and risk to respond-ers, and achieve control of dangerous situations.

...almost all fire departments in the Denver metro area and throughout Colorado deploy RAE Systems monitors at structure fires

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