| Carbon monoxide poisoning is a compensable occupational illness under the NJ Workers' Compensation Act. See Fiore v Consolidated Freightways (NJ 1995). In that case the occupational heart condition was held compensable even though the worker had a history of smoking. Today's post is from the nytimes.com/ Lethal levels of carbon monoxide filled a music rehearsal studio in New Jersey on Saturday, killing two people and sickening a dozen more, the authorities said. The police in Passaic responded to an emergency call around 1:30 p.m. from someone who reported finding two bodies in a room in the studio at a former warehouse at 61 Willet Street, said Keith Furlong, a spokesman for the city. The authorities had not released the identities of the dead as of Saturday night because their families had not yet been contacted, Mr. Furlong said. Ambulances from Passaic and several other communities rushed 12 people to three area hospitals, he said. The patients, who were in different rooms than the two people who died, were conscious but showing symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning such as confusion and coughing. St. Mary’s Hospital in Passaic treated six of the patients, who were suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning that was not considered life-threatening, said Vanessa Warner, a spokeswoman for the hospital. Several of the patients had been released as of Saturday night, and one was expected to be admitted for observation, she said. Information about the other six patients was not available Saturday night. The authorities were still trying to determine what caused the carbon monoxide to rise to lethal levels. Michael DeMarco, the chief assistant prosecutor for Passaic County, said the Passaic Police Department was leading the investigation. A spokesman for the department did... |
See more about Carbon Monoxide Poisoning at the US CDC site. Click here.
"Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas that is extremely poisonous and can kill within minutes. In the US each year, nearly 500 die while as many as 20,000 visit emergency rooms for exposure primarily from poorly-maintained heating systems or gas stoves and gas-powered generators used for heat or power during storms."
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Jon L. Gelman of Wayne NJ is the author of NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson-Reuters) and co-author of the national treatise, Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson-Reuters). For over 4 decades the Law Offices of Jon L Gelman 1.973.696.7900 jon@gelmans.com have been representing injured workers and their families who have suffered occupational accidents and illnesses.
