Seven people hospitalized after gas leak at Cheney Brothers

Seven people have been hospitalized due to carbon monoxide poisoning after a gas leak at the Cheney Brothers food product supply store on Tuesday, according to Ocala Fire Rescue. [Jennifer Hunt Murty / 2023]

Seven people were hospitalized due to carbon monoxide poisoning after a gas leak at the Cheney Brothers food product supply store on Tuesday, according to Ocala Fire Rescue (OFR).

OFR rescue crews were dispatched to the location at about 7:39 p.m., where, upon their arrival, all occupants were evacuated from the building. Eleven of the occupants exhibited symptoms of CO poisoning, which include dizziness, headaches, chest pain and upset stomach, according to an OFR press release.

Four of the people with symptoms refused medical treatment, and the remaining seven were transported to the hospital by Marion County Fire Rescue.

The cause of the leak was identified to be a propane-powered floor cleaner, which malfunctioned and emitted gas levels of 1400 parts per million (ppm), which is about 280 times higher than the amount of gas that is safe to be present in an enclosed building.

“With open doors and the help of strategically placed fans, crews ventilated the building until CO levels dropped below 2 ppm,” according to the press release.

CO leaks are so dangerous because it is mostly undetectable to the human senses and can overcome a person very quickly, according to OFR.

More than 100,000 people suffer from accidental CO poisoning a year, at least 420 instances of which are fatal, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.