The ninth annual Carbon Monoxide (CO) Awareness Week in Ontario began on Tuesday. It is organised to raise awareness of the risks posed by the toxic gas and to remind people of the requirement for CO alarms in homes.
According to the province, exposure to the invisible, odourless, and tasteless gas, also known as the “silent killer,” can cause flu-like symptoms such as headaches, nausea, dizziness, and dyspnea, as well as possible loss of consciousness and death, without the rising body temperature.
The Hawkins Gignac Act, which requires CO alarms near sleeping spaces in Ontario homes with fuel-burning appliances, fireplaces, or attached garages, was approved through Queen’s Park about nine years ago.
The measure was named in honour of OPP Const. and introduced by Oxford PC MPP Ernie Hardeman. 2008 saw the death by carbon monoxide poisoning of Laurie Hawkins (née Gignac), 41, her husband Richard, 40, and their kids, Cassandra, 14, and Jordan, 12.
The Woodstock family, who did not have a carbon monoxide detector, perished as a result of the gas seeping back into the house because the vent from a gas fireplace to the chimney became clogged over time by a buildup of carbon, according to a later study.
The couple’s two children as well as Richard were all declared dead on the same day. Hawkins survived and was admitted to the hospital in a critical condition; however, he passed away eight days later.
After Hawkins skipped work, police had gone to the family’s home.
“My family and I discuss it virtually daily. It’s something that was such a shock 14 years ago that it just reverberates right through ’til today,” said John Gignac, Hawkins’ uncle, on Wednesday.
It seems as if they passed only yesterday.
Gignac, a former captain of the Brantford fire department, later founded the non-profit Hawkins-Gignac Foundation for Carbon Monoxide Education in the family’s honour. He also assisted in the passage of the Hawkins Gignac Act through the Ontario legislature, a process that took several years and resulted in the declaration of CO Awareness Week, which begins on November 1.
Today, we’re up to about 80%, and the majority of people are aware of the risks posed by carbon monoxide, he said.
Several jurisdictions, including Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Saskatchewan, and the Yukon, have laws requiring carbon monoxide alarms, according to him.
Right now, he continued, “we’re working on the eastern provinces, like Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia, and maybe, sooner or later, we’ll get the law enacted all over Canada.”
“I don’t think it happens quickly enough. It absolutely amazes me how challenging it is to enact legislation for something as basic as installing a CO alarm in your home. The bill would undoubtedly jump-start education in every province.
Like smoke detectors, carbon monoxide alarms should be frequently inspected and replaced. Gignac advises testing CO alarms at least once a month and replacing them every seven to ten years.
“For 34 years, I served as a captain in the fire department. I spread the word about smoke alarms, and now that I’m the executive director of the Hawkins-Gignac Foundation, I obviously also spread the word about CO alarms,” he said.
“Trying to convince everyone to pay attention and install functional alarms in their houses is a really challenging undertaking. But it’s a task that I’m up to, and I’ll keep going until everybody has one, and we can protect as many families as we possibly can.
According to the government, homes account for about 65% of CO-related injuries and fatalities. At least 579 people died of accidental poisoning by and exposure to carbon monoxide in Canada between 2008 and 2020, according to figures from Statistics Canada. — with files from The Canadian Press.
As Ontario observes its ninth CO Awareness Week, residents are advised to test and replace their CO alarms.
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