In the Saratov region, the number of carbon monoxide poisoning is growing

Since the end of September, five cases of carbon monoxide poisoning have occurred in the Saratov region. Emergency occurred in Balashov, Arkadak, Saratov. Almost all of the victims are families with children.

Carbon monoxide is insidious: it has no color or smell, but when ingested, it is deadly. With the onset of cold weather in the Saratov region, cases of poisoning with this dangerous substance have become more frequent. So, on September 30, a leak occurred in the Balashov-3 microdistrict due to a malfunction of the flexible liner of gas equipment. As a result of the incident, a child was injured - the girl was urgently hospitalized. This is reported by the Prosecutor’s office of the Saratov region.

On October 3, six people were hospitalized at once: a young mother who came with five children from Samara to Balashov and stayed at a rented apartment in the house No. 51 on Gagarin Street.

The whole family was poisoned by carbon monoxide. Presumably, the cause of the incident was a leak due to a malfunction of the gas column, the supervisory authority noted.

The next day, October 4, a resident of Balashov was taken to a medical institution with signs of carbon monoxide poisoning. His wife and young child refused hospitalization. On October 5, a family from Arkadak was urgently hospitalized in a local hospital: a 43-year-old man, his 31-year-old wife and 12-year-old son inhaled carbon monoxide in their own house in the agricultural machinery area. Investigators are currently establishing all the circumstances of the incident. In turn, the prosecutor’s office with the involvement of specialists will establish the circumstances and causes of the incident, as well as verify compliance with the requirements of the legislation in the operation and maintenance of indoor gas equipment.

Another case occurred in Saratov. On October 6, in the house No. 52 on Enthusiast Avenue, family members, including a minor child, were poisoned with carbon monoxide. The victims were hospitalized. Local media reported that the victims were an eight-year-old girl and a 35-year-old man: after providing assistance, both were released from the medical institution.

In January in Balakov, six people, including two young children, died from carbon monoxide poisoning. One of the men was found in the bathroom, allegedly poisoned while swimming. One of the cats living in the apartment was also killed. According to the main version of the investigation, the cause of the tragedy was a malfunction of the gas column, which provided hot water supply. The equipment failed, which led to a violation of traction.

Lyudmila Alfereva, chairman of the regional branch of the All-Russian public movement For Life, has been working with large families for many years. In her opinion, most often the cause of tragedies is the lack of funds from the family for timely inspection of gas equipment.

- Residents of private homes basic safety rules when using heating are passed down from generation to generation, says Lyudmila Alferyeva. But maintenance of gas equipment is a paid service, and you can take money for it only from your own pocket. Prices for such services are rising following general inflation. The family is in the grip: on the one hand looms the prospect of freezing in an unheated house, on the other - to be poisoned by carbon monoxide due to a faulty system. In a difficult financial situation can also be a single mother or a divorced woman with children who has no one to rely on.

The public explains: in small populations

women with children do not always have the opportunity to work. A single allowance is also not due to everyone: if an elderly relative left a dilapidated hut as an inheritance, formally the family has two real estate objects and payments are simply denied.