HARRISBURG, Pa. — The flurries started falling throughout central Pennsylvania on Tuesday morning. By Tuesday afternoon, business was picking up at hardware stores across our area.
Jolynn Weist, the owner of Weist Hardware in New Cumberland, Cumberland County, said she is seeing an increase in customers trying to get ahead of the cold weather. Many of them are purchasing portable heaters for their homes.
“This is definitely a fun time for us, it’s getting busier now," said Weist. “A lot of people buy little space heaters to keep a room a little bit warmer than another. Sometimes they get a kerosene heater if they want to keep a larger space warm.”
But fire officials are asking people to be careful using gas-powered heating appliances—warning of the potential dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning.
“Carbon monoxide is definitely the silent killer, and everyone thinks it will never happen to us," said Brian Enterline, the fire chief of the Harrisburg Fire Department.
According to the CDC—nearly 400 people die each year due to accidental carbon monoxide poisoning. Another 50,000 people are rushed to the emergency room annually due to carbon monoxide.
Chief Brian Enterline said he has responded to numerous carbon monoxide incidents throughout Harrisburg.
“We’ve been on, unfortunately, some fatal incidents in the city where there weren’t any working carbon monoxide detectors and something malfunctioned, like a furnace pipe blew off and the exhaust was going into the home," said Enterline.
Enterline urges anyone with gas-powered heat sources to keep at least one carbon monoxide detector in their home this winter.
“Have that detector in the area of those heating appliances, also one somewhere in the living area that will alert you to those elevated levels of carbon monoxide," he recommended.