Elderly Couple Found Dead In Raymond Home

http://www.wmtw.com/r/29028803/detail.html

RAYMOND, Maine -- The Cumberland County Sheriff's Office said an elderly couple was found dead in a home on Musson Road in Raymond.

The firefighters took a reading with a carbon monoxide meter and found that the level was extremely high, Davis said. A generator was running in the basement and the home may have been without power because of last weekend's tropical storm.

Very sad day. My thoughts and prayers go out to the family. I don't understand how people can do this without knowing the consequences. I know one of our forum members lives in Raymond, but I can't remember who. Maybe he can shed a little more light on this story.

All due respect but.....

People are stupid. My whole town is filling up with Generac 5500's, from the local hardware store; they get kicking a breeze of exhaust real far, like 20' away. Enclosed they become a CO death machine.
A few years ago there was a story in the paper about a couple of knuckleheads that put a hibachi in a camping tent! They were found dead at Round Valley Reservoir in NJ.

This was on our local news last night. The part that got me was that they had trouble getting it hooked up so they had an electrician come and get it working for them. HE didn't see a problem looming? Arghhhhhh!!!! You might understand Harry Homeowner making a dumb mistake, but a licensed electrician didn't know you shouldn't be running a generator in a cellar? *sigh*

Perhaps is was a "drive in garage" cellar. Some people make the mistake of thinking it's safe to run a generator in an attached garage if they leave to garage door open. It is NOT! Certainly a sad story. My heart goes out to the family.

Wow is all I can say. Sorry for the family ..... this totally sucks ....... but .... really??? A gen in the basement??? I thought it was only my generation that was completely braindead!

I thought everyone on the planet knows that when you burn ANYTHING, it produces CO ??? Wow ...... They had to have done that on purpose ....

It's a sad event.
When I run my generator it's at least 15 feet away from the house and placed so the exhaust faces away from the building. Any windows nearby are closed.
Besides the obvious CO in the exhaust what if something happens like a gas leak? On Sunday I saw a generator running right outside the closed door of an attached garage. People have no common sense.

I have some friends that have them mounted in their garage with an exhaust pipe going outside. It' not that they don't know better but in their area it would be stolen if they turned their backs.

Thats horrible. My wife is so worried about our new harman and the gases emitted from burning coal but fortunatly i have a good hvac friend that explained to her about what could happen with just a hot air oil furnace with a cracked exchanger or plugged chimney. Nothing like havin a big rig exhausting in your basement. I dont know about you folks but my generator is louder than a SOB. Which is an another reason i get it away from the home as far as i can. This electrician needs to be "questioned", im sorry but would any of you folks want this electrician around your family doing work. I shouldnt jump too conclusions but wow first year of electrical class was all about proper handling and safety and that did cover portable gens and associated codes.

I just read in the hurricane post that Freddy said it was in a basement GARAGE with the door open. IF so I take back my harsh post. I was thinking they wheeled it down a bulkhead & fired it right up in a completely enclosed concrete or field stone basement. I could see someone making the mistake of doing that in a garage, not thinking about wind blowing exhaust back into the dwelling.

Hard to know what happened without all the facts. Sounds like that newspaper is as inept at reporting facts as mine is.

SMITTY wrote:I just read in the hurricane post that Freddy said it was in a basement GARAGE

Smitty...slap yourself ...that wasn't the hurricane post & I didn't say it was, it was this post and I said "perhaps it was..."

I agree, you'd think the new would have gotten the facts.

Well, one fact for sure, it's ashame. I find as I get older, I guesstimate types of death--that one don't sound to terrible. My prayers also go out to the surviving family

Perhaps the Electrician ONLY hooked up the power cord, and the folks decided that they didn't want the generator to get soaked in the rain. Always reserve judgment UNTIL you can VERIFY the facts. Pointing fingers is not beneficial to anyone, since the tragedy will hopefully be another lesson that we can all refresh our resolve on.

It happens every time we have an event of this magnitude, and the Hospitals, Nurses, Red Cross, Firemen, Police, Tradespeople and EMT personnel always are in print, on TV and in person begging folks to be careful and warning of the consequences. How many signs do we see that show a BIG RED SLASH through a sign depicting these situations.

Ever hear a little kid say: If you are not part of the solution, then you are part of the problem? We all need to step up and be good neighbors and help those who can't help themselves. Prevention is a heck of a lot easier than enduring another page in the obits. Be proactive or shut up!!!

freetown fred wrote:I find as I get older, I guesstimate types of death--that one don't sound too terrible.

You will have to work harder at it now, though. My brother claims that car exhaust is so clean now, that you can't kill yourself by closing the garage doors and sitting in your running car.

I'm set.I'll get something from SMITTY

rberq wrote:

freetown fred wrote:I find as I get older, I guesstimate types of death--that one don't sound too terrible.

You will have to work harder at it now, though. My brother claims that car exhaust is so clean now, that you can't kill yourself by closing the garage doors and sitting in your running car.

Did you ask him to prove it?

It still happens every winter(mostly) people will either forget for whatever reason to shut off their cars & even going in the house end up dead. Anything that uses oxygen & gives off carbon monoxide will kill you, the tighter the house & the quieter the car the easier it becomes especially for the elderly. In a few more months it will be happening again, just ask any fireman or medical professional.