LOUISVILLE, Ky. — After two people were found dead in a hotel from possible carbon monoxide poisoning, people are wondering how this could happen.
Firefighters had detected enough carbon monoxide in the hotel to evacuate the whole building.
Turns out, carbon monoxide detectors aren't legally required in hotels and motels in Kentucky.
Jefferson County Fire Service spokesperson Jordan Yuodis said carbon monoxide detectors could help prevent a number of deaths.
"Carbon monoxide is odorless, it's colorless, you can't taste it, you can't see it, it's known as the silent killer because it is the silent killer," Yuodis said.
Here in Kentucky, more than 200 people a year are sent to the emergency room for carbon monoxide poisoning.
There are 14 states that require carbon monoxide detectors in hotels and motels according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL):
- California
- Florida
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Michigan
- New Jersey
- New York
- North Carolina
- Oregon
- Tennessee
- Vermont
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
Kentucky law does require carbon monoxide detectors in newly constructed one and two-family homes as well as townhomes less than three stories, apartment buildings, dorms, childcare facilities and assisted living facilities that have a fuel-burning-appliance or an attached garage, according to Kentucky.gov.
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