Carbon monoxide forces 80 people from N.W. Calgary homes

Roughly 80 people were temporarily forced out of their northwest condo units Sunday morning because of dangerous levels of carbon monoxide.

Fire crews responded around 10:30 a.m. to the 8800 block of Royal Birch Boulevard after being called by ATCO Gas for high levels of carbon monoxide.

Readings in the building found levels as high as 380 parts per million, which posed a serious and immediate risk to residents' health.

All 132 units in the four-storey condo building were cleared.

One person had beentransferred to Alberta Health Services for care but no other injuries werereported.

Calgary Transit buses werebrought in to shelter the evacuees asfire crews ventilatedthe building.

The Calgary Fire Department is reminding Calgarians that carbon monoxide can be deadly.

It is tasteless, colourless and odourless, and is produced when fuel does not burn properly.

The best ways to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning are annual inspections of all natural gas-burning appliances and wood burning fireplaces, and installing and maintaining a carbon monoxide detector.