A woman was pronounced dead of carbon monoxide poisoning yesterday at the public Conde de S. Januario Hospital Centre, according to a statement by the Judiciary Police.
The police identified the deceased as a 29-year-old Vietnamese woman surnamed Luu.
Luu was a non-resident worker, but her form of employment was not revealed by the statement. Neither did the statement reveal whether the victim’s bathroom is windowless.
The statement said that at 9:15 p.m. on Saturday, Luu went to have a shower in the bathroom of her flat in Avenida do General Castelo Branco. At 10:40 p.m. Luu’s husband realised that she had not come out of the bathroom, and then rapped on the door but did not get any response from her.
He rushed into the bathroom and discovered his wife sitting in the bathtub with her head lowered, after which he called the police for help, the statement said.
The police were notified at around noon yesterday that Luu was pronounced dead in the emergency department of the local public hospital. According to a blood test report, doctors believe that Luu died of carbon monoxide poisoning.
Firefighters investigating the scene suspect that the victim was exposed to the colourless and odourless gas as she didn’t turn on the ventilator while having a shower in the bathroom with an LPG water heater, according to the statement.
According to Wikipedia, “Carbon monoxide poisoning typically occurs from breathing in too much carbon monoxide (CO).
Symptoms are often described as “flu-like” and commonly include headache, dizziness, weakness, vomiting, chest pain, and confusion. Large exposures can result in loss of consciousness, arrhythmias, seizures, or death…CO is a colourless and odourless gas which is initially non-irritating.”
The Fire Services Bureau (CB) on January 25 warned that there have been a rising number of carbon monoxide poisoning cases this year, and the bureau had already recorded four cases up to that date. The bureau last year recorded a total of 21 cases of carbon monoxide poisoning. The Fire Services Bureau also urged the public to have their LPG water heater installed only by qualified technicians, and to have proper vents installed.
Many local bathrooms are windowless.
