St. George family of 4 hospitalized for carbon monoxide poisoning

ST. GEORGE — A family of four was hospitalized Saturday after dangerously high levels of carbon monoxide were detected in their home.

Police were called to a home near 1100 N. 1600 West in St. George after the family became sick. Officers said the father had left a car running to charge its battery and then turned the radio up loud so his children could dance to the music outside the garage.

Police said the mother awoke at about 1:30 a.m. Saturday with difficulty breathing. The family was evacuated from the home.

The father was so disoriented, he could not tell officers if anyone else was inside the home or not.

"Officers went inside with carbon monoxide levels very high," St. George Police Sgt. Craig Harding said Monday.

Firefighters said CO levels inside the home were 250 parts per million. Normally, anything above 40 parts per million is considered dangerous. A neighboring apartment also was evacuated because of the extremely high CO levels.

The family was transported to Dixie Regional Medical Center where they were treated for CO poisoning.