Carbon monoxide poses unseen danger for summer boaters
Teak surfing/platform dragging place watersports enthusiasts inside dangerous gas cloud
TEMPE, Ariz. (May 24, 2004) – The increasing popularity of ski-boat watersports such as teak surfing/platform dragging brings an increased risk of being exposed to carbon monoxide (CO), an odorless, colorless and potentially deadly gas. With Memorial Day weekend heralding the start of summer vacation time, more Arizonans are expected to visit the state’s lakes and rivers this year, bringing an increased risk of poisoning accidents caused by carbon monoxide.
One person who died on an Arizona lake in the past month is believed to have been teak surfing.
Robert Baron, M.D., co-director of emergency services at Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center, wants boaters to become aware of carbon monoxide and to avoid these dangerous activities. “There are several towing or dragging sports that have popped-up in recent years that expose people to carbon monoxide,” Dr. Baron said. “By far the most dangerous is platform dragging/teak surfing.”
This activity starts with an individual hanging onto the boat’s swim platform (often made of teak wood) while the boat is moving at a slow speed (platform dragging). Teak surfers release from the ski platform and body surf on the boat’s wake. Teak surfers/platform draggers often do not wear personal flotation vests as that creates drag and causes them to lose the wake.
This activity places the person’s head within a couple of feet of the exhaust port and directly in the cloud of carbon monoxide exhaust. Concentrations of carbon monoxide in this area of the boat can be high enough to cause a loss of consciousness within seconds. The boat’s slow speed does not allow airflow to break-up and dissipate the exhaust. On boats with outboard engines, teak surfers/platform draggers are also within inches of the propeller blades.
Other activities such as wake surfing (using a small surfboard to surf the wake) may also pose a danger, although no deaths have yet been attributed to these activities.
“A study sponsored by the U.S. Coast Guard determined that carbon monoxide levels were highest immediately behind the transom but were measurable as far as 80 feet from the rear of the boat,” Dr. Baron said.
A 2003 study by the Sacramento (Calif.) Metro Fire Department found that CO levels from boat exhaust can reach critical levels in a short time. Researchers ran a CO test on a late-model motorboat with a properly-tuned engine during light-breeze conditions at Folsom Lake. Thirty seconds after the engine was started, the CO level in the air around the boat's transom was 200 parts per million (ppm). After less than a minute, the reading had climbed to 990 ppm.
The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) conducted studies that found levels as high as 26,000 ppm in the area of the swim platform while the ski boat was moving through the water at 10-11 miles per hour (the speed at which teak surfing/platform dragging takes place. According to the World Health Organization, a level exceeding 87 ppm during a 15-minute interval is considered dangerous. Levels of 12,600 ppm can cause death in 1-3 minutes.
“Any occupancy of the swim platform or the area immediately around it while the boat’s engine is running places humans at risk for poisoning, unconsciousness and or death,” said Dr. Baron.
Nationally, there have been 42 non-houseboat incidents of carbon monoxide poisoning, including 18 fatalities and 14 people who lost consciousness and were rescued. Of the 42 poisonings, 12 occurred while the boat was not moving, but the engine was idling.
The symptoms of CO poisoning may include severe headache, dizziness, confusion, nausea, fainting, and death. Low levels can cause shortness of breath, mild nausea, and a mild headache. Exposure to even low levels can be fatal because CO accumulates in your blood. If this leads to unconsciousness in a water environment, the person simply sinks below the surface and drowns, helpless to save themselves. The mild symptoms of carbon-monoxide poisoning may not be suspected immediately because they are similar to those of people with the flu, food poisoning, seasickness or other illnesses. If you suspect CO poisoning, immediately get the victim to fresh air and seek medical care.
Ski-boat manufacturers have become aware of the dangers of teak surfing/platform dragging. One manufacturer, Centurion Boats of Merced, Calif., has developed a side-venting exhaust port that reduces emissions in the swim platform area.
Dr. Baron has been studying the increasing incidences of CO poisonings on Arizona's waters. As medical director for Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Dr. Baron and Jane McCammon of NIOSH were co-investigators of 2001 study that detailed 111 fatal and near-fatal houseboat generator-related carbon monoxide poisonings at Lake Powell. That number has increased to 165 CO poisonings at Lake Powell and 506 poisonings nationwide.
That study led to a nationwide awareness of CO dangers and a Coast Guard issued product recall. One generator manufacturer, Westerbeke, is now producing a marine generator that removes over 99 percent of carbon monoxide from its exhaust. Other houseboat manufacturers are dealing with the problem in another effective way through the use of a stack or chimney that empties the exhaust away from all areas occupied by boaters. According to Dr. Baron, “the most effective solutions to this problem are engineering changes that will remove the carbon monoxide at its source. Until those changes take place, the public must be warned of these dangers so they can stay clear of this undetectable killer, carbon monoxide.”
In 2001, Baron and McCammon were presented with the Meritorious Public Service Award Medals by the U.S. Coast Guard for their work. The following year both researchers; BGSMC toxicologists Steven Curry, M.D., Frank LoVecchio, M.D., and Anne Michelle Ruha, M.D.; and Tim Radtke from the U.S. Department of Interior earned the Micromedix Award at the 2002 North American Congress of Clinical Toxicology for presenting work which is useful to poison centers as they manage victims of toxic exposures.
In April 2004, Dr. Baron and McCammon were awarded the National Award of Merit from the National Water Safety Congress for significant contributions to water safety issues/programs on a national scale.
Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center is Arizona’s largest and busiest medical center. Located in downtown Phoenix, Banner Good Samaritan has been providing medical care since 1911. Today, nearly 1,700 physicians representing more than 50 specialties work with Banner Good Samaritan staff to provide care to more than 36,000 inpatients a year.
Contact:
Banner Good Samaritan Public Relations
(602) 239-4411
