Little has changed since the 2021 Texas winter storm. Power outages following Beryl’s July landfall led to two deaths and roughly 400 Texans hospitalized for carbon monoxide poisoning.
carbon monoxide
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The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
Feds advance portable generator safety rule to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning
Saying that manufacturers failed to make generators safer, the Consumer Product Safety Commission is moving forward with proposed regulations to bolster protections. The proposal comes after reporting by ProPublica, The Texas Tribune and NBC News.
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The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
A shut-off switch was supposed to prevent 99% of generator-related deaths. It failed a family of three.
The generator industry has touted automatic shut-off switches as a lifesaving fix for carbon monoxide poisoning. But the voluntary standard falls short of what federal regulators say is necessary to eliminate deaths.
Posted in
The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
Congress investigates portable generator manufacturers following carbon monoxide deaths in Texas and other states
Many generators on the market have not received potentially lifesaving safety upgrades. Citing an investigation by The Texas Tribune, ProPublica and NBC News after the February 2021 winter storm, a House committee wants to know why.
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The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
Carbon monoxide killed a Texas mother and daughter. A firefighter was reprimanded after a delayed 911 response.
After half of a Houston family was found dead from carbon monoxide poisoning, reporting by ProPublica, The Texas Tribune and NBC News revealed that a fire crew had failed to enter the house to check on them. A firefighter has now been disciplined.
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The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
U.S. plans new safety rules to crack down on carbon monoxide poisoning from portable generators
The announcement comes two months after an investigation by ProPublica, The Texas Tribune and NBC News detailed the deadly cost of the government’s failure to regulate portable generators.
Posted in
The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
Generators can cause deadly carbon monoxide poisoning. But the industry resists rules to make them safer.
Portable generators are among the deadliest consumer products. Two decades after the government identified the danger, and as climate change leads to more power outages, people are left vulnerable by a system that lets the industry regulate itself.
Posted in
The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
Texas must do more to effectively prevent carbon monoxide disasters, experts say
Months after the deadly gas killed at least 17 Texans during a massive winter storm, lawmakers have failed to take significant action to protect most of the state’s residents.
Posted in
The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
Inside an agonizing three-hour wait for 911 response to carbon monoxide poisoning in Texas
Following a 911 call about a family that had fainted, first responders arrived at the house and knocked on the door. No one answered, so they left. Inside, an entire family was being poisoned by carbon monoxide.
Posted in
The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
Texas enabled the worst carbon monoxide poisoning catastrophe in recent U.S. history
They used their car to stay warm when a winter storm brought down the Texas power grid. In a state that doesn’t require carbon monoxide alarms in homes, they had no warning they were poisoning themselves.