Watch CBS News

Investigators Stumped As To Source Of Carbon Monoxide Leak That Sent 10 To Hospital

LITTLETON, Colo. (CBS4)- Investigators are stumped as to the source of a carbon monoxide leak in a home that sent 10 people to the hospital on New Year's Day.

Ten people inside the home spent New Year's Day at Saint Anthony's Hospital after a mysterious carbon monoxide leak inside a Littleton home.

Five of those hospitalized were children, some of them visiting the home for a sleepover.

"One of the little girls called her dad this morning to say she didn't feel well and needed to come home from the sleepover," said neighbor Heidi O'Leary.

Soon everyone inside the home was physically ill.

"They indicated they had nausea, dizziness, light headedness, which is indicative of carbon monoxide poisoning," said West Metro Fire Rescue spokesman Travis Hopwood.

West Metro Fire Rescue said the level of carbon monoxide in the home was astonishing and the outcome could have been much more tragic.

"We were over 250 parts per millions which is definitely fatal," said Hopwood. "Over a prolonged exposure if that had happened overnight, we could have had fatalities."

Fire investigators worked with Xcel Energy crews to locate the source of the leak. They were unable to pinpoint the source.

"We shut off all the gas firing appliances in the home and ventilated the house so there was no carbon monoxide in the house anymore and then we've turned everything back on and we can't get it to replicate," said Hopwood.

Without an answer to where the gas is coming from, the family has been advised to stay out of the home.

The home did have a carbon monoxide detector but it wasn't working properly. The fire department said a good rule of thumb is to have a detector on each level of the home.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.