A New Orleans doctor appeared on a local television station to warn people about the dangers of using power generators inside and near homes.
What's happening?
Dr. Eric Griggs explained on WVUE Fox 8 that generators produce carbon monoxide, a dangerous odorless gas that displaces oxygen in the blood and can kill. This is an especially pertinent message in The Big Easy, which experiences frequent power outages due to severe storms.
Griggs advised people never to run these devices indoors — including inside a garage or basement — and to keep them at least 20 feet away from windows and doors. "It's a silent killer because it's an odorless, insidious gas … that displaces the oxygen in your blood and can cause you to stop breathing," he said.
Why is carbon monoxide important?
"Carbon monoxide, as it comes into your house, you may start to feel some things that got a little bit off," the interviewer, Fox 8's Maddie Kerth, noted, segueing into physical signs to watch out for.
These include confusion, headache, nausea, sleepiness, and fatigue, according to Griggs. If you feel any of these symptoms, "you want to get outside in fresh air as soon as possible," he added.
More than 400 people die each year in the United States from carbon monoxide poisoning not linked to fires, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
What can be done about carbon monoxide?
Griggs urged people to have battery-operated or battery backed-up carbon monoxide detectors in their homes and to test them monthly.
Another way to protect yourself from the dangers of generators and their carbon monoxide risks is to invest in a solar system. Unlike generators, which run on fossil fuels, solar runs solely on the power of the sun. Plus, a battery system can help save you money on your energy bills and cut reliance on the increasingly unreliable grid.
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If you're looking into buying a battery generator for your home, TCD partner EnergySage offers free tools that can help you investigate home battery storage options, and it can even hook you up with competitive installation estimates. Thanks to a partnership with electrification company Qmerit, EnergySage guarantees you will snag the best price possible.
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