FARGO - Residents of a Fargo apartment building escaped harm early Wednesday after a faulty furnace spread carbon monoxide through the building.
According to Assistant Fargo Fire Chief Leroy Skarloken:
Residents of an apartment building in the 1500 block of University Drive North called authorities about 6:45 a.m. after smelling natural gas.
People living in a ground-floor apartment were already outside when firefighters arrived, but firefighters had to rouse a sleeping resident living in a lower level apartment.
Skarloken said a tester showed carbon monoxide levels as high as 260 parts per million in some parts of the building, adding that levels of 9 parts per million can be dangerous.
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Skarloken said the gas furnace was turned on for the first time Wednesday morning and residents smelled natural gas about 40 minutes later.
He said had the furnace been turned on the night before and the residents gone to sleep, they could have been in serious danger.
Skarloken said the incident underscores the importance of having any gas-powered appliance checked out at the start of a heating season.
