Georgia schools should review danger of carbon monoxide, report says

Carbon monoxide safety tips

• Consider buying a carbon monoxide detector for your home or business.
• Watch for yellow or orange flames from gas appliances, which indicate they're producing carbon monoxide. Appliances should burn a clear, blue flame. A small amount of yellow or orange flames is normal.
• Never operate gas-powered engines, such as those in automobiles and lawn mowers, in a confined space.
• Have heating systems and water heaters checked annually by a professional.

Source: Office of Georgia Insurance Commissioner Ralph Hudgens

All public schools in Georgia should evaluate whether carbon monoxide poses a danger in their facilities, but the state shouldn’t require schools to install detection systems for the toxic gas, according to a task force’s report released Wednesday.

The report is the result of a review ordered by Gov. Nathan Deal after carbon monoxide buildup sickened about 40 students and staff members at Atlanta’s Finch Elementary School on Dec. 3, 2012. The school was evacuated, and those affected by headaches, dizziness and drowsiness were treated at area hospitals.

A state requirement for carbon monoxide detectors would be costly and unnecessary at some schools, said Georgia Department of Community Affairs Commissioner Gretchen Corbin.

Schools that use fuel-fired water heaters, furnaces, generators and cooking equipment are more likely to produce carbon monoxide, while newer schools with electric heating systems and appliances have a lower risk.

“A school-by-school assessment of the need for carbon monoxide detectors by local officials combined with good training for schools staff is more beneficial than a state mandate,” Corbin said.

Few school systems in Georgia routinely measure and monitor carbon monoxide, but educators became more aware of the hazard after the incident at Finch Elementary, said Mike Rowland, director of facilities services for the Georgia Department of Education.

“The advice of the task force is that every school district do some kind of assessment and make their own determination about whether detection and monitoring devices are required,” said Rowland, a member of the carbon monoxide task force.

After school systems identify potential carbon monoxide problems, they should develop a plan to replace old equipment or install detectors, according to the task force’s report.

Two states, Connecticut and Maryland, have passed laws requiring carbon monoxide detection in schools, the report said. Two bills and one resolution pending before the Georgia General Assembly call for requiring for carbon monoxide detectors in schools.