CINCINNATI — When it gets this cold, some people begin using stoves or generators to heat their homes. But the Cincinnati Fire Department warns that these methods could actually be more dangerous than beneficial.
“It is unknowing, it sneaks up on you,” said Captain Elton Britton with the Cincinnati Fire Department's code enforcement and community risk reduction. “It’s actually called the silent killer, because there’s no way of knowing until you’re sick.”
Where there is fire or a flame, there is carbon monoxide. A colorless, tasteless and odorless gas that can lead to carbon monoxide poisoning if breathed in.
WATCH: How dangerous carbon monoxide poisoning can be, and how to prevent it
Britton said from December to February, CFD sees an increase in carbon monoxide poisoning cases, mainly from those trying to heat their homes with improper methods.
“Using your oven as a heat source, generators, because all these things produce heat, carbon monoxide is produced by them. So we want those things to be properly used or properly maintained to reduce the chance of this happening,” Britton said.
Carbon monoxide poisoning blocks your red blood cells, which leads to oxygen being blocked throughout your body.
“Having carbon monoxide poisoning is like breathing through a straw. Everything is greatly reduced,” Britton said.
The symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning can start with a headache and body aches, but then quickly escalate to nausea, vomiting, dizziness and in the most serious cases, death.
“It’s such a serious matter that when we even think about it being carbon monoxide, we wear the same fire gear we wear into a burning building,” Britton told us.
Britton said he’s seen entire apartment buildings become sick due to carbon monoxide. He told us he's become sick from it himself, too.
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“I have personally been outside of a building where there was a high level of carbon monoxide, and it actually made my head hurt, my gums ache,” Britton said.
The best way to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning is to use your heating devices properly, never to use your stove for heat and to make sure all maintenance is up to date.
The next best thing is to get a carbon monoxide detector, according to Britton.
