A new law taking effect January 1 requires carbon monoxide detectors be installed in one or two-family homes sold or newly leased in Louisiana.
Metairie State Representative Stephanie Hilferty says she and other family members were staying in her mother-in-law’s home after Hurricane Ida when her portable carbon monoxide detector went off in the middle of the night.
“We were able to ventilate the home and get out and figure out the issue but had that detector not been there had we not thought to bring it from my house it’s scary to think what could have happened,” she recalled.
The state health department says six people in Louisiana died from carbon monoxide poisoning after Hurricane Ida, and nine after Laura. Hilferty says she knows from experience you can’t smell, taste, or see carbon monoxide, but it does cause fatigue and headaches.
“That’s what a lot of us experienced after a hurricane when you’re trying to get back up and get going and get everything fixed up. So it’s not something that you would initially say, oh, this is probably carbon monoxide poisoning,” she said.
This law will affect any home that is sold or newly leased after the first of the year. Hilferty says she offered to co-author the law after her family’s experience.
“It’s not highly specialized equipment. You can get it at Target, you can get it at a home improvement store, that sort of thing,” Hilferty said.