Feb 4, 2008 11:19 pm US/Eastern
20 People Sickened In Separate CO Incidents
BALTIMORE (WJZ) ―
Two incidents involving carbon monoxide sent more than 20 people to the hospital in just days. One of them was at a well-known restaurant.
Ruth's Chris will reopen Tuesday after repairs to its faulty furnace.
A similar problem has forced a northeast Baltimore family from their home.
A malfunctioning water heater and furnace produce carbon monoxide fumes that sickened a family of six in a Ramblewood Road rowhouse.
"They did find several occupants semi-responsive and a 17-month-old baby unconscious," Kevin Cartwright said.
On Saturday, 13 people were hospitalized in a carbon monoxide emergency at Pier 5's Ruth's Chris steakhouse. Approximately 150 diners were evacuated when CO levels climbed to 400 parts per million because of a heating system gone haywire.
The restaurant is set to reopen Tuesday, which is bad news for William Hoffman, who's in town from Rockville.
"It's disappointing. I checked the website and it says we're open. I come down here and they're closed," he said.
Shock Trauma doctors tell
Eyewitness News they've treated more than 21 cases of carbon monoxide poisoning this weekend alone and consulted on several others. That's more cases than they've seen in several years.
They include victims of the Pier 5 and northeast Baltimore cases. Most were minor and did not require the use of the hyperbolic chamber where severe cases are treated.
"Most of them had minor carbon monoxide exposure in the sense that they had some headaches, some nausea and vomiting. Nobody had any long-term effects as far as we can tell," said Dr. Robert Rosenthal.
Eyewitness News learns the family on Ramblewood Road has been temporarily relocated until furnace repairs are complete.
Doctors are encouraging families to get carbon monoxide detectors for their home.
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