Carbon Monoxide risks

[LimL]

The MAIB has just published a preliminary safety warning after two boaters and their dog died whilst running their engine whilst moored, probably while charging their batteries. The report makes it clear how quickly CO can build up when running an engine whilst stationary.

Many of us should be worried, unless you have already taken precautions...

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/57a872eeed915d096e000000/MAIBSafetyBulletin2-2016.pdf

 

[Actionmat]

Pardon my ignorance, but is this a problem more likely to occur in a petrol boat, or is diesel just as bad?

 

[LimL]

Diesel engines do produce less CO than petrol engines. But the risk still exists especially in confined areas, see for example this abstract from the US.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18643868

"While it is known that diesel fuel combustion engines produce much lower concentrations of carbon monoxide (CO) than gasoline engines, these emissions could certainly generate lethal ambient concentrations given a sufficient amount of time in an enclosed space and under suitable environmental conditions. The authors report a case of CO poisoning which was initially referred for autopsy as a presumed natural death of a truck driver found in the secure cab of a running diesel tractor trailer truck. Completion of the preliminary investigation ascribed death to complications of ischemic heart disease (IHD), pending toxicological analysis that included quantification of CO. When the toxicology results showed lethal blood COHbg, the cause of death was re-certified as CO intoxication secondary to inhalation of (diesel) vehicular exhaust fumes. Because of the unique source of fatal CO intoxication in this case, the contributory IHD and the possible contaminants in the putrefied blood, a 10-year retrospective review was conducted on all nonfire related CO deaths autopsied (n = 94) at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Louisville, KY from 1994 to 2003. For validation of the COHbg detection method used by the Kentucky Office of Forensic Toxicology (KYOFT), blood samples from these cases along with controls were submitted to three laboratories using various analytical methods yielding no statistically significant differences. Lastly, an extensive literature review produced no scientifically reported cases of fatal CO poisoning attributed to diesel fuel exhaust."

 

[alant]

The MAIB has just published a preliminary safety warning after two boaters and their dog died whilst running their engine whilst moored, probably while charging their batteries. The report makes it clear how quickly CO can build up when running an engine whilst stationary.

Many of us should be worried, unless you have already taken precautions...

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/57a872eeed915d096e000000/MAIBSafetyBulletin2-2016.pdf

Don't forget, that CO2 will also kill you.

 

[BSSOffice]

Pardon my ignorance, but is this a problem more likely to occur in a petrol boat, or is diesel just as bad?

As post #3 has covered, the indications are that diesel may be less likely to produces the volumes of fatal CO as quickly as petrol engines. However, on our records of boating deaths are one from a portable diesel generator running aboard a widebeam canal boat and one from a forced oil-fired heater when the exhaust outlet was blocked and the owner was unaware.
Killer petrol engines include portable generators, portable pumps, small outboards and propulsion engines.