Whether you are at home, at work, or even in your car, carbon monoxide can strike, leaving death and permanent devastation in its wake. Carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas that is both colorless and odorless. It is produced any time you burn fuel. This fuel may power common possessions such as your household kitchen appliances, vehicle, or furnace. As such, anyone can find himself or herself at risk of accidental carbon monoxide poisoning. If you were seriously injured as a result of carbon monoxide or a family member died from Carbon monoxide, contact a Rhode Island carbon monoxide death lawyer.

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Victim Killed by Carbon Monoxide poisoning

Carbon Monoxide death in RI

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Environmental Health, each year more than 400 Americans die from carbon monoxide poisoning that is not related to a fire.

More than 20,000 people go to the hospital, and more than 4,000 people are hospitalized. Poisoning Frequently Asked Questions. (2015, December 30). Retrieved from CDC 

Silent but Deadly

If your loved one, child, mother, father, husband or wife were killed in a deadly gas accident in Rhode Island or Massachusetts(MA)  then you should contact the best RI carbon monoxide wrongful death attorney in RI or MA. A Providence wrongful death lawyer is also a RI injury attorney who can help you get the compensation you deserve.

Fatalities

Special care should be taken during the winter. More fuel-fired products like fireplaces, space heaters, wood burning stoves, and furnaces are used when cold weather strikes. So it follows that with each winter season, comes an increased risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. In 2012, an estimated 53% of carbon monoxide deaths occurred during the four coldest months – November, December, January, and February. Hnatov, Matthew. (2015 October). Non-Fire Carbon Monoxide Deaths Associated with the Use of Consumer Products 2012 Annual Estimates. Retrieved from the CDC 

RI accident

There are many ways to prevent tragic accidents resulting from carbon monoxide poisoning in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. In the home, it is key to own a working carbon monoxide detector. Additionally, in the event of a power outage, you should never operate a generator in the home or garage. A technician should check any fuel-burning appliances annually, and these appliances, as well as chimneys, must be properly vented and checked for obstruction. In vehicles in Rhode island and MA, it is critical to never leave a vehicle running in a garage attached to a home. A mechanic should check the exhaust system of the vehicle each year. What’s more, you must make sure your vehicle’s exhaust pipe is free from obstruction.

Accidental injury

Even if you take precautions, what should you do if tragedy still strikes? Accidents certainly happen. However, there are times when someone has acted negligently, resulting in permanent injury or death to you or a loved one. If so, you may be able to recoup lost wages, medical costs, pain and suffering, as well as additional damages. That negligent someone may be a manufacturer, landlord, or an employer. If you suspect negligence, you should seek the advice of an experienced  Rhode Island wrongful death attorney who is also a RI carbon monoxide fatality lawyer. A Rhode Island personal injury attorney can evaluate your case and launch an investigation to determine whether a party has in fact acted negligently and whether you may recover damages.

Carbon Monoxide death on a boat

“An autopsy found that carbon monoxide was a contributing factor in the drowning death of a University of Cincinnati student-athlete in May, according to the Hamilton County Coroner’s Office.  The Ohio Department of Natural Resources said the body of Allyson Sidloski –a 21-year-old UC women’s soccer player from Strongsville, Ohio – was recovered around 1 a.m. on May 23 at William H. Harsha Lake in Clermont County.  “It is my opinion, based on the autopsy findings and the information available to me at the time of the autopsy that the cause of death is drowning and the contributory cause of death is carbon monoxide intoxication,” Deputy Coroner Russell Uptegrove wrote in a June 17 opinion.” Cincinatti.com

Rhode Island carbon monoxide death lawyer

 Heater leaks: “SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A swimming pool heater apparently caused a carbon monoxide leak that killed one man and critically injured another at a Corridor G hotel on Tuesday morning. Officials were called to the Holiday Inn Express at Corridor G around 10 a.m. and arrived to find one man dead and another unresponsive, said Lt. G.E. Amburgey of the South Charleston Police Department. Both men were in their beds. The men were part of a group of construction workers staying at the hotel. When they did not show up for a morning meeting, two other workers were sent to check on them. Those two workers were also overcome by the carbon monoxide. On Tuesday evening… The critically injured man, who was not identified as of Tuesday evening, was taken to CAMC General Hospital; the two others were sent to Saint Francis Hospital. Later Tuesday, eight other members of the construction crew complained of feeling ill, South Charleston Police Chief Brad Rinehart said. Rinehart, who was not at the scene, said he understood the workers were taken to a hospital in a KRT bus. Moran and his co-workers were on the hotel’s fifth floor, but carbon monoxide levels were high in other parts of the hotel as well,

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