OCEAN CITY, Md. — Fourteen people were evaluated and four taken to the hospital after a carbon monoxide detector activated late Friday morning at the Ashore Resort and Beach Club, according to the Ocean City Fire Department.
According to the hotel, the cause of the carbon monoxide leak was determined to be a ventilation issue with the boiler. The hotel says the boiler has been shut down and repairs are being made.
“In order for this boiler to be turned back on, Town officials will require necessary repairs," says Fire Marshal Joe Sexauer. "Followed by a third-party mechanical inspection and a gas company inspection to ensure the system is safe to operate.”
Firefighters say 18 people were evaluated after the carbon monoxide leak.
It was a scary scene for Lilly-Anne Eggers who was in the hotel at the time.
"The alarm started screaming and the voice activation was saying to evacuate emergency situation," she tells CoastTV. "I have a bum knee that can't walk. So I had to walk down ten flights of steps. I was crying because my grandchildren were on another floor and I didn't know if everybody was out."
The Fire Department says they were dispatched around 11 a.m. to the hotel at 10100 Coastal Highway. Ocean City firefighters say the building was evacuated and a total of 18 patients were evaluated by first responders. Ashore says four hotel employees were taken to the hospital with elevated levels of carbon monoxide in their blood, but they have since been released. The fire department says those four employees were in an office adjacent to the ground floor boiler room.
Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas often caused by malfunctioning heating systems or appliances.
The Ashore hotel says operations resumed as normal about two hours after the leak.
The hotel says around 1:30 p.m., the fire department and building inspector deemed the hotel safe to operate, and normal operations resumed.
