Every year in the United States, hundreds of people die of carbon monoxide poisoning and thousands more are hospitalized. Carbon monoxide is a gas produced when fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas and oil are burned. Furnaces, cars, gas powered tools such as power washers, generators, kerosene heaters, and even charcoal grills and camp stoves all produce carbon monoxide. In only minutes, deadly fumes can develop in enclosed spaces.

You cannot see, smell, or taste it, but it can make you sick or even kill you. When you breathe carbon monoxide, it enters the bloodstream and cuts off delivery of oxygen to the body's organs and tissues. The first symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning may be headache, dizziness, confusion, fatigue, and nausea. As more of this gas is inhaled, it can cause unconsciousness, brain damage and death.