'I wouldn't be here today': Saskatoon woman says CO detector saved her life

A Saskatoon woman who says her carbon monoxide detector saved her life is urging others to purchase the devices for their homes.

Pearl Korentchenko and her boyfriend noticed their furnace was not working when they returned from an outing on Thursday night.

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They set up a space heater in the basement to keep the pipes from freezing, checked the batteries on their carbon monoxide monitor and called a repair company to come in the morning.

Just as they were getting ready for bed, the monitor's alarm went off.

"We didn't feel the greatest at that point," she said.

"He had a headache and I was starting to feel nauseated, but not to the point where it was excessive and immediate."

Testing confirms levels

The couple called 911 and the fire department responded andtested the levels.The highest reading they got was 35 parts per million near a door that had been open earlier in the night.

Korentchenko said at the ratethe levels were rising inside the house, she believes she and her boyfriend could have been killed if they had gone to sleep.

She credits the monitor for saving their lives and wants to share her story so others will consider purchasing a CO alarm.

"It wasn't anything that we thought we would need and if we wouldn't have had it, I wouldn't be here today," she said.

"And I think that's important for anyone who doesn't think of that kind of thing."

Silent killer

Carbon monoxide is odourless, colourless and tasteless, so poisoning and death can occur with very little to alert a homeowner of a CO buildup.

Korentchenko said she would like to see the provincial government make the detectors mandatory, as they are in Ontario.

• Working CO alarms now mandatory in Ontario

"Everybody knows about smoke detectors, not a lot of people think about CO monitors," she said.

According to the SaskPower website, symptomsof CO poisoning include dizziness, headache, vomiting, burning eyes and confusion.

It says anyone who thinks they are experiencing signs of CO poisoning should leave the house immediately,seek medical treatment if required and call 911 after exiting the home.