Resources to Help Prevent Carbon Monoxide Poisoning in Puerto Rico

Earlier this year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a new factsheet titled “Carbon Monoxide Poisoning: Protect Your Family and Yourself.” The resource provides crucial information about carbon monoxide (CO), an odorless, colorless, and highly toxic gas that can be deadly before people even realize it is present.

Because CO cannot be seen, smelled, or tasted, exposure often goes unnoticed until symptoms appear. Health effects vary depending on age, health status, exposure duration, and gas concentration. Early signs of poisoning often resemble the flu, but without a fever, and can include:

• Headache
• Dizziness
• Nausea
• Weakness
• Shortness of breath
• Confusion

“At high levels, carbon monoxide poisoning can be fatal, with hundreds of people dying each year due to exposure, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,” said Harry Peña, President of Zimmetry Environmental. “The CDC goes on to warn that 100,000 people visit an emergency department and more than 14,000 are hospitalized annually due to carbon monoxide. It’s important to note that any fuel-burning appliance can generate carbon monoxide if not properly installed, maintained, or ventilated. These sources exist in homes, schools, and workplaces across Puerto Rico.”

Fortunately, carbon monoxide poisoning is completely preventable. The EPA’s new factsheet offers practical steps, like installing CO detectors, to protect families and building occupants. Zimmetry Environmental’s team of industrial hygiene and indoor environmental quality experts also provides air testing and consulting services to identify and mitigate potential CO and combustion gas hazards. They even recently sponsored an educational video highlighting the EPA’s new factsheet on carbon monoxide prevention, available at: https://youtu.be/pIaEXDxm_hs.

For more information about Zimmetry Environmental and its air quality, industrial hygiene, and compliance testing and consulting services, please visit www.zimmetry.com, call (787) 995.0005, or email info@zimmetry.com.

About Zimmetry Environmental
Since 2002, Zimmetry Environmental has been providing environmental consulting services to building owners and managers, architects, engineers, EHS professionals, and Fortune 500 companies. The company is based in Puerto Rico and provides services across the Caribbean and Central America. The professionals at Zimmetry offer environmental compliance, indoor air quality, asbestos, lead-based paint, Phase I ESAs, and general environmental consulting services.

Contact Information

Paul Cochrane

President

Cochrane & Associates, LLC

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