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DES MOINES, Iowa (KCCI) — A birthday outing that started in a metro skating rink ended with a family trip to the emergency room.
Jen Taylor, of Waukee, said her family started feeling sick Saturday after visiting Skate West at 2019 Grand Ave. in West Des Moines for her daughter’s sixth birthday.
Taylor said that the party took a turn for the worst after about an hour at the skating rink,
“Some of the kids started to not feel well or slow down, I guess,” Taylor said.
She said she also felt sick and ended up taking her family to the hospital after calling to report their symptoms. Doctors said they were experiencing side effects of carbon monoxide poisoning.
“We all went in and had about four hours of oxygen treatment,” Taylor said.
West Des Moines fire officials said they weren’t notified until late Saturday night after getting a call from a doctor.
MidAmerican Energy responded to Skate West and reported above-normal carbon monoxide readings inside the building.
“They narrowed it down to a gas-fired heater, one of those resident heaters that hangs from the ceiling,” said Mike Whitsell, with the West Des Moines Fire Department.
With the weather getting colder, Whitsell said now is the time to have gas-powered appliances serviced and to install carbon monoxide detectors.
“I would assume Skate West wasn’t the only establishment, whether it’s a commercial business or a home, that did the same thing and fired those (heaters) off for the first time this weekend,” he said.
Taylor said the incident serves as a reminder that carbon monoxide poisoning can happen anywhere, at any time.
“I just feel very blessed that we weren’t there any longer than we were because it could have ended very differently,” Taylor said.
On Monday, KCCI spoke to officials at Skate West, who declined to comment.
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