Forklifts Emitting Carbon Monoxide Sicken 40 Employees At Texas, North Carolina Plants

Not only gas-generated heaters, but now forklifts, are causing carbon monoxide poisoning.

There were two incidents Tuesday involving  factories, a fish-packing operation and a blueberry plant. In both cases roughly 20 employees got carbon monoxide poisoning from lethal fumes being emitted by forklifts.   

 In one incident, 21 workers at a fish packing plant in Galveston, Texas, were overcome by carbon monoxide and had to be taken to the hospital. http://www.familybadge.org/(X(1)S(fwhofpec00iolg45r1mfcruf))/default.aspx?act=Newsletter.aspx&category=News+1-2&newsletterid=20448&menugroup=Home

The employees at Platinum Packing on Harborside Drive were busy cutting the heads off of fish and shrimp when they suddenly got headaches and felt nauseous.

Firefighters were called to the scene, and they determined that a propane-powered forklift had been giving off  carbon monoxide fumes, sickening the workers. The forklift was running and had been left unattended.

Testing detected high levels of carbon monoxide in the fish plant.

The 21 workers, a good share of the plant’s 36 total employees, were sent to John Sealy Hospital for treatment for carbon monoxide poisoning.

 Responders brought air ventilators to the plant to rid it of the noxious fumes, and some employees did return to work  later Tuesday.

In the second incident, at least 20 workers in a blueberry plant, the Carolina Blueberry Association, in Garland, N.C., were treated at several hospitals and released after being sickened by carbon monoxide that leaked from a forklift.   

 At about 7 p.m. Tuesday some workers started to have trouble breathing. On Wednesday morning, Haz-Met crews went into the plant to investigate, and found that a forklift had been emitting carbon monoxide.