One child dead after six kids found lying unconscious in hotel pool area

A broken pool heater caused a carbon monoxide leak that killed one child and injured several others at a Michigan hotel.

According to ABC News, a hotel staffer found six children, ages 12 to 14, lying unconscious in an indoor pool area at a Quality Inn in Niles, Michigan, on Saturday. They were all believed to be suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning, and 13-year-old Brian Douglas Watts, from Niles, did not survive.

Niles Fire Captain Don Wise told MLive that firefighters found carbon monoxide concentrations as high asĀ 800 parts per million when they arrived on the scene, levels that can cause poisoning in an hour or less.

“All the responders took a little bit more risk, but we had to get those kids out of there and into fresh air for their best chance at survival,” Wise told ABC News.

In total, 12 people were reportedly treated for carbon monoxide poisoning, including a child who become unresponsive in her hotel room after returning from the pool area where the other children were found.

The hotel, which had 24 rooms occupied at the time, was evacuated and will remain closed while the heating system is being repaired.

 

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