Senior citizen rescued

Poisoned with nitrogen gas while boiling water

The CO alarm of the Rieder Rot-Kreuz-Sanis was activated immediately: Danger to life for the two women in the house

(Bild: FOTOKERSCHI.AT/Werner Kerschbaum)

That was close! An elderly woman from the Innviertel region was in acute danger of dying while boiling water on a wood-fired stove. So did a second woman who was in the family home, which was unnoticed by deadly carbon monoxide. The chimney was not working and the nitrogen gases spread through the house.

Heating the water on the stove almost proved fatal for an 88-year-old woman from the Innviertel region. The woman from Ried suddenly had health problems and a 49-year-old woman, who was also in the house, alerted the emergency services. When the Red Cross helpers arrived, their CO detectors went off immediately. These are fitted to the uniforms as standard and beep as soon as there is a dangerous concentration of the nitrogen gas carbon monoxide.

Fresh air did them good
The emergency doctor arrived by helicopter because the emergency doctor, who was travelling by car, was not available and stabilized the senior citizen, who was immediately taken outside. She had severe symptoms of intoxication, but these quickly improved in the fresh air and she was taken to Ried Hospital. The 49-year-old woman was also taken to hospital for clarification.

Fire department and chimney sweep searched for the cause
The firefighters from Ried and a chimney sweep identified the table stove, or rather the flue, as the cause. The chimney was not draughty, gases from the fire spread throughout the house and especially in the kitchen, where the elderly woman was heating water.