By Sarah Keoghan
Six people have been rushed to hospital in Sydney’s west on Tuesday morning after an outdoor charcoal makeshift heater was brought indoors to keep them warm, causing suspected carbon monoxide poisoning.
The four adults and two children were sleeping in a granny flat at a Merrylands property when one person woke up and complained they were feeling nauseous.
The family used an outdoor cooker to heat up the charcoal beads. Credit: Fire and Rescue NSW
Emergency services were called to the scene just before 5am to assist the individual before paramedics and firefighters discovered an outdoor barbecue cooker, which had been brought in to warm the house overnight.
The temperature in Merrylands fell to a low of 6.3 degrees at 10pm on Monday.
The son of one of the victims, Majed Nawaseri, spoke to Nine News and said his family members called him out of the main house to help them.
“I was sleeping. My older brother came knocking on the door,” he said.
“He said to come out, we need help. It was so scary.”
The makeshift heater was an outdoor cooker the family had used to burn charcoal beads, which give off poisonous, colourless and odourless carbon monoxide gas that can fill rooms without warning.
All six people were transported to hospital after paramedics determined the rest of the household was also suffering from suspected carbon monoxide poisoning.
The four adults were taken to Westmead Hospital and the two boys were taken to Westmead Children’s Hospital. Two of the adults were guests and stayed overnight with the family.
NSW Ambulance Inspector Andrew McAlpine said paramedics who arrived on-scene found all patients were suffering nausea and signs of drowsiness, which are symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning. All six people are now in a stable condition.
“Thankfully one person was aware enough to call Triple Zero, preventing a potential tragedy,” he said.
“In this cold weather, it’s so important to follow the public messages about staying safe as you keep warm and having working alarm systems.”
The incident comes after a string of residential fires this winter that have resulted in the deaths of 10 people.
Paramedics, firefighters and police were called to the scene just before 5am on Tuesday.Credit: Nine News
A spokesman from Fire and Rescue NSW said the household was lucky to still be alive. The incident was a timely reminder not to bring outdoor heaters inside, the spokesman added.
“It’s a big no-no. It replaces oxygen with carbon, so it’s lucky we are not talking about six deaths. It will just put you to sleep and then to death,” he said.
“It’s fortunate someone did get up in the night for whatever reason, and they did call paramedics. This has been a tragedy avoided.”
On Monday, Fire and Rescue NSW Commissioner Paul Baxter issued a plea to the public over the use of heaters, saying most of the deaths were “preventable”.
Most recently, a 62-year-old man was killed in his bedroom after a fire engulfed his property in Bankstown.
There have been six more deaths this winter when compared to last year’s winter, which saw a seasonal total last year of four deaths. Another 42 people also have been injured in fires since June 1 this year.
Baxter said the main causes of these fires were known.
“Portable heaters, especially bar heaters will kill you if you are not careful with them,” he said.
“Keep anything combustible a metre from the heater; clothing, curtains, couches and furniture - turn them off when you go to bed.”
Our Breaking News Alert will notify you of significant breaking news when it happens. Get it here.