Carbon monoxide leak sends Zion residents to hospital

A malfunctioning tankless hot water heater is believed to have caused a carbon monoxide leak that left six residents ill at a Zion house early Friday morning, authorities said.

Someone who lives at the house, located on the 1900 block of 20th Street, came home from work about 3:30 a.m. to find six others inside sick, and proceeded to call 911. When emergency crews arrived, they found the six people outside of the house to be conscious, though all appeared to have symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning, according to a news release from the Zion Fire and Rescue Department.

Tests showed the level of carbon monoxide throughout house to be 345 parts per million. Anything above 35 ppm is considered dangerous, Zion fire authorities said.

The residents knew something was wrong when their pet birds began squawking and trying to escape from their cages, officials said.

The six people had “significantly elevated” carbon monoxide levels, and were transported to the hospital.

The Zion Fire and Rescue Department has a limited number of carbon monoxide detectors available to city residents for free. For more information, contact 847-746-4040.