BREWER, Maine—The New Hampshire company that installed a new propane heating system linked to carbon monoxide poisonings at a 31-unit apartment complex did not have a city-required permit required, a city official says.
At least eight people were sent to the hospital early this week when a separated vent pipe leaked the potentially deadly gas into the complex.
Inspectors from both the state Oil, Solid Fuel, Natural Gas and Propane licensing board and the state fire marshal's office were investigating, Brewer Code Enforcement Officer Dave Russell said.
The technicians who installed the system were working for Concord Gas of Bow, N.H. Concord Gas and the Orono company that manages the property did not return calls seeking comment.
Out-of-state technicians hired to work in Maine must be licensed in Maine, according to Doug Dunbar, assistant to the commissioner of the state Department of Professional and Financial Regulation.
Dunbar said he couldn't discuss whether the Concord Gas employees had proper licenses because the case remains under investigation.
Lisa Ouellette, 43, whose apartment is close to where the separated pipe was releasing the gas, was found unconscious by her boyfriend Sunday and was transported to St. Joseph Hospital. The fire department was called Monday when at least seven other people became sick as the odorless gas continued to accumulate.
Three of the seven were treated in St. Joseph's hyperbaric chamber and only one was admitted and remains in the hospital, spokeswoman Amy Allen said Wednesday.
The hospital would not comment on Ouellette's condition. Her sister, Sheila MacKenzie, told the Bangor Daily News that she was being treated Tuesday in the critical care unit but was showing signs of improvement.
"We won't know if there is any permanent effect until down the road," MacKenzie said. "It might take awhile. It's very dangerous."
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Information from: Bangor Daily News, http://www.bangornews.com
