AUSTIN -- Austin firefighters say seven people were hospitalized Sunday after a carbon monoxide leak at the Canyon Villas Apartments at 1212 Westheimer Road.
A mother and her young children were treated in a hyerbaric chamber, according to Travis County EMS medics. Others were taken to the hospital, were treated and released.
"My mom went to the hospital, had to be checked out, but it was nothing big like them. They had to go in the chamber," said Rico Medina.
Firefighters say the normal range is 35 to 200 parts per million. In these apartments, Austin Fire Department Battalion Chief Palmer Buck says they found levels of 600 parts per million.
"This is a wake-up call to all of us," said Buck.
He says anyone with a natural gas home should invest in a carbon monoxide detector. He suggests checking your gas dryer, water heater and stove top for leaks.
Buck says the tenants in the Canyon Villas Apartments were missing face plates on their heating units. The air wasn't ventilating through the pipes, so carbon monoxide was leaking into their apartments.
Firefighters say everyone is out of the hospital. The mother and her children are staying in a hotel.
