"On the verge of losing consciousness" Twelve-year-old collapses in the shower after CO poisoning in Vienna

She was already on the verge of losing consciousness, according to a spokesperson for the Vienna emergency services: a twelve-year-old girl collapsed while showering. She had suffered carbon monoxide poisoning.

A twelve-year-old girl suffered CO poisoning while showering in a house in the Austrian capital Vienna and collapsed. Her parents called the emergency services after the incident on Saturday. When the emergency services arrived at the apartment, their CO warning devices were triggered.

"The girl was already on the verge of losing consciousness", a spokesperson for the emergency services told the APA news agency on Sunday. The family was then taken outside and the patient was taken to hospital.

Measurements in the stairwell and adjacent apartments

The professional fire department then carried out checks and measurements in the stairwell and adjacent apartments. A ventilation unit was also set up in the stairwell. A gas boiler was shut off by Wiener Netze in the course of the operation.

Problems with an increased concentration of carbon monoxide can occur if the gas boiler or chimney are not or only poorly maintained, if it is particularly hot or if fans draw the air out of the apartment into the open air. High heat can cause a kind of air congestion in the flues. The exhaust gases are not hot enough compared to the outside air and can therefore no longer escape.

In this context, the fire department advised on Sunday to regularly maintain and check gas boilers and to regularly ventilate homes, especially on particularly hot days. A window should be tilted when taking a hot shower.

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