A woman from Houston and her child were recently found dead on Tuesday after suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning.
Authorities confirmed how their car was left in a garage as a means of generating heat during the catastrophic winter storm Uri that lashed the nation in recent days. Moreover, the storm left millions without power as turbines froze, putting many at a standstill.
Media outlets reported how police officers and firefighters immediately responded to the house in Houston, Texas for a welfare check. And that was when they came across two adults, alongside two kids suffering from the hazardous carbon monoxide poisoning. as reported by Houston’s Police Department.
Investigators claim the woman and her daughter were pronounced dead on the spot while a man and his son were rushed by paramedics to a nearby hospital.
This residence is one of several seen across the state that was hit by major power outages as the winter storm’s icy strong winds and below zero temperatures froze turbines. For this reason, families were barred from their electrical heating systems and were forced to resort to their vehicles in garages or make use of their indoor generators to generate heat as well as electricity.
The police department confirmed how initial indications pointed to how the vehicle was running at full speed in the attached garage as a source of heat generation when the power outage ensued. Therefore, authorities issued a warning on how cars, generators, as well as grills, shouldn’t be made use of indoors or inside buildings.
Just 250 miles northwest of Houston in Fort Worth, media reports went on claiming how the Cook Children’s Medical Center treated around 13 children for carbon monoxide poisoning.
They even confirmed how some kids were below the age of 5 years. “Evey single patient admitted at the hospital was suffering from complaints relating to carbon monoxide poisoning. And this is just something we hardly see,” exclaimed one senior doctor at the medical facility.
In total, authorities confirmed how they have responded to hundreds of phone calls with complaints regarding the same hazardous condition. And that is why they’re raising awareness on the issue to avoid further deaths.