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Fire Service Vehicles Wrapped To Raise Awareness Of Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service has been working with partners Cadent to design and wrap Community Support Vehicles with a safety message to raise awareness of the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Carbon monoxide is a colourless, odourless, tasteless gas that can have a serious impact on health if undetected. Symptoms can mimic many common illnesses and include headaches, nausea, breathlessness, dizziness and loss of consciousness, and it often also effects pets.

The best way to protect against carbon monoxide poisoning is to keep gas appliances well maintained, and to ensure annual services are completed. You can install CO alarms in each room where there is a gas appliance so you have an early warning of any potential problems, In addition to a CO alarm, there are a few signs that you can look out for that indicate your gas appliance isn’t working correctly:

  • yellow or orange rather than blue flames (except fuel effect fires or flueless appliances which display this colour flame)
  • soot or yellow/brown staining around, or on appliances
  • pilot lights that frequently blow out
  • increased condensation inside windows

Prevention Station Manager Mark Whitelaw said: “Only 40% of people have a working CO alarm in their house across the UK. This is a shocking statistic considering most households have at least one gas appliance whether it be a boiler or gas hob.

“To help raise awareness of the dangers of Carbon Monoxide we have joined with our partners from Cadent Gas to wrap some of our community safety vehicles with awareness messages. These vehicles are out and about in our most vulnerable communities making them the ideal platform to share such an important safety message. We hope people around Derbyshire see the vans and take a moment to think about their gas appliances and getting a CO alarm installed.”

Hayley Tranter, Customer Safeguarding Manager at Cadent, added: “Cadent are delighted to have this important Carbon Monoxide messaging put on Derbyshire Fire & Rescue vans that will be seen in the communities, in the key areas of high reports of Carbon Monoxide across Derbyshire.”