Be Safe - Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Claimed 2 Ice Fishers in Mb.

Zip-in-Z · #1 01-30-2021, 03:52 PM

Some sad news from back home, happened on the Red River this morning near Selkirk, Mb .... be careful in your tents/shacks.

Condolences to their family,

D.

https://globalnews.ca/news/7609794/m...9s6pS7xarSKTHU

Two people who went ice fishing were found dead Saturday morning.

Manitoba RCMP were called shortly after 7 a.m. to a report of two unresponsive people in an ice fishing tent on the ice in the RM of St. Clements.

RCMP say this was just north of the entrance to the river on CIL Road near Selkirk.

A man and woman, both 52 years old from Winnipeg, were transported to hospital, where they were pronounced dead.

Police say foul play is not suspected but the cause of death needs to be confirmed by autopsies.

Carbon monoxide poisoning is considered a possibility in their deaths.

HuyFishin · #2 01-30-2021, 03:55 PM

damn that is very sad new. Be safe everyone.

pikeman06 · #3 01-30-2021, 06:07 PM

Yup leave a bit of zipper open top AND bottom. Fabric tents don't breathe good enough. People think they do. I've been there....dozing off just thinking that you are warm and comfy and really its the early stages of carbon monoxide poisoning. Drift off to sleep and its game over. Sorry to the families of the deceased for your loss, tragic accident easily overlooked. Every propane heater should have a low oxygen sensor/auto shut off. It happens quick in a small space.

AlbertanGP · #4 01-30-2021, 08:45 PM

If you can't afford a -40*C bag, you really shouldn't be winter camping. Use a CO detector positioned at the same height as your head as a minimum. Better yet, turn the heater off at night and rest assured you'll wake up in the morning. Sad news, but we see this every season.

EZM · #5 01-30-2021, 10:07 PM

Exactly why those old style sunflower heater are so dangerous, no CO2 shut off and you doze off - the CO2 builds up and you suffocate.

I spent a little money and bought the buddy heater, too much CO2 and they turn off. The extra $80-$100 I spent to keep me and my family and friends safe is worth every penny to me.

Sad story, my condolences.

HuyFishin · #6 01-30-2021, 10:15 PM

100% should be illegal to sleep with a sunflower heater. Problem solved
Camping on the ice is so popular now.

Wonder what they will do if it keeps happening.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

JohninAB · #7 01-31-2021, 01:04 AM

Sad news indeed. Condolences to their family and friends.

Used to use a single sunflower in the ice tent but dumped it after one cold day on the ice and bought a new Big Buddy from CT and have not looked back.

I always leave one door partially opened when heater is running.

58thecat · #8 01-31-2021, 08:06 AM

Open vents, run the buddy heaters and CO monitors yup two if you plan on staying on the ice overnight etc....sorry to hear.

AlbertanGP · #9 01-31-2021, 10:03 AM

I wouldn't trust a Buddy Heater alone overnight. The thermocouple *is* the oxygen depletion sensor on those units, and there are pages and pages of people having issues with the thermocouple online.

Mountain Guy · #10 01-31-2021, 11:05 AM

No details but I guess we could assume that if they were discovered at 7am then they likely slept in the tent. As mentioned , sleeping in a tent with propane heat running is playing russian roulette.
I know people who do it and no joking, having an active bladder might be the difference.. opening the door every few hours may be the difference between waking up in the morning or not.
Mix in a deadly mix of alcohol and you have trouble looming.
Personally I would never intentionally sleep in a tent or enclosed trailer with propane heat running.

Surfnturf · #11 01-31-2021, 11:22 AM

[QUOTE=AlbertanGP;4322055]If you can't afford a -40*C bag, you really shouldn't be winter camping. Use a CO detector positioned at the same height as your head as a minimum. Better yet, turn the heater off at night and rest assured you'll wake up in the morning. Sad news, but we see this every season.

It's the propane heaters...I use butane and it's way better

fish99 · #12 01-31-2021, 12:06 PM

what about the Coleman propane catalytic heaters are they safe?

Dewey Cox · #13 01-31-2021, 01:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fish99

what about the Coleman propane catalytic heaters are they safe?

If it's consuming oxygen from the same confined space you are, then no.
I have a little Coleman catalytic propane heater and I have had chest pains, and other CO relayed symptoms when running it in a tent.
But, I also think I may be extra sensitive to CO. I have been told that it is cumulative, and once you get sick from it once, you will get sick in shorter order every time after.
Also, I wonder if the catalytic style of heater is more prone to producing CO than a ceramic one?

SNAPFisher · #14 01-31-2021, 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlbertanGP

I wouldn't trust a Buddy Heater alone overnight. The thermocouple *is* the oxygen depletion sensor on those units, and there are pages and pages of people having issues with the thermocouple online.

Yep, I like your idea earlier of the extra sensor. That makes the most sense just to be certain.

Crappy result though in this situation.

colvert · #15 01-31-2021, 03:30 PM

I prefer to be a little cold than taking the risk of not waking up

Teamprotz · #16 01-31-2021, 03:39 PM

You mention the buddy heater. After using it t Friday with no troubles got it set up yesterday n tent and fired it up. Mine is attached by a hose to a 20lb tank. Tank sits outside tent. I fired it up and boom, tent was full of flames. Got out pulled it under tent wall shut tank off and extinguished flames with snow. Hose connection where bottle would go came loose. Close call. Had it happened at night while sleeping may have had a different ending. Almost lost my dad and uncle to asphyxiation when I was a kid. Home built camper , iosol(?) heater going. Dad woke up with a headache decided a smoke would help , couldn’t get his zippo to light , reached over and opened a window and glow from heater increased dramatically. Very close call. My condolences to the family

AlbertanGP · #17 01-31-2021, 04:41 PM

The little filter you're supposed to use with the hose for 20lb bottles is a real b$%^& to connect properly. So much so that I've all but given up connecting it in the field. If I didn't bring it out all connected together properly, I'd have nothing but issues and never felt comfortable. I've learned to refill the one pound bottles and have a rack built on my Ranger topper to carry 20 or so of them. Lighter and easier to manage the Buddy, I can move it around in the tent wherever I want without worrying about the hose, and it would provide an extra bit of insurance in a case like originally posted since it would run out in the middle of the night. I still think a one pound propane bottle could kill you though, so be careful.

MB Man · #18 02-03-2021, 10:35 AM

Thanks everyone for your condolences and helpful tips for others. The person who passed away in this accident was a co-worker and friend of mine. His wife was by his side. My deepest condolences also to his family and friends. This tragic accident could have been prevented with extra measures in place. My friend was pretty good at this sport but I did notice that that night the winds decreased to nearly zero winds overnight. What initially may have been enough ventilation dropped significantly. More windows would have needed to be opened which easily could be over-looked or too late and I'm not saying it was the case here but a possible contributing factor. This type of situation could happen any time of day so please everyone play it safe. Keep a watch on the wind conditions and forecast conditions. I haven't heard yet if CO poisoning was the cause but I do know that my friend was planning an overnight stay on the ice. Personally I don't recommend to anyone to sleep in a tent with a gas powered heater.

Zip-in-Z · #19 02-04-2021, 04:58 PM

Really sorry to hear about your buddy & his Mrs, hope others in MB as well here in Ab take the appropriate precautions, especially this weekend with the cold temps ... stay safe.

D.

Supergrit · #20 02-04-2021, 05:09 PM

http://zodi.com/tent-heaters
Sad to hear that two people passed away sleeping in their fishing tent. If you are going to sleep in your tent use something that keeps the combustion outside and blows the heat in.

Dewey Cox · #21 02-04-2021, 05:31 PM

Any time I have ever looked those zodi heaters up, they don't have any of the small tent heaters.

Smoky buck · #22 02-04-2021, 05:32 PM

Sadly this kind of thing has been happening every winter for a long time.

People should know better

CBintheNorth · #23 02-04-2021, 10:20 PM

Could be the best $43 anyone ever spent.
I use it in the ice fishing tent and the outfitters tent.
Cheap peace of mind that leads to better sleeps.

https://www.homedepot.ca/product/kid...erm=1000400511

pinelakeperch · #24 02-05-2021, 08:50 AM

What a terrible loss; I really feel for the couple and their families. Hopefully, the story serves as a reminder of the dangers of C0, and helps to prevent more tragic deaths.

Stinky Buffalo · #25 02-05-2021, 09:12 AM

Condolences to the family and friends (MB Man). So sad to hear.

Quote:

Originally Posted by CBintheNorth

Could be the best $43 anyone ever spent.
I use it in the ice fishing tent and the outfitters tent.
Cheap peace of mind that leads to better sleeps.

https://www.homedepot.ca/product/kid...erm=1000400511

Absolutely! I've been kind of anal about these things when camping with heaters. They even have 10-year battery-powered versions. Well worth the spend for peace of mind.

Soiler · #26 02-05-2021, 02:32 PM

Very sad to hear...
I got gassed by a new Remington sunflower Tank top heater years ago... only had it on for 15-20 min as it didn’t take long to realize something was very wrong. But it still messed me up enough that I couldn’t drive home. And it gave me chills and a fever, put me down for about 24 hrs. More a metal fume fever issue than CO poisoning but same situation. Be careful in your tents/shacks people.

cube · #27 02-05-2021, 04:14 PM

[QUOTE=Surfnturf;4322363]

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlbertanGP

If you can't afford a -40*C bag, you really shouldn't be winter camping. Use a CO detector positioned at the same height as your head as a minimum. Better yet, turn the heater off at night and rest assured you'll wake up in the morning. Sad news, but we see this every season.

It's the propane heaters...I use butane and it's way better

Given CO is lighter than air should not the detector be placed higher in the tent?

Does anyone know if those battery operated CO detectors work in the cold?

boonedocks · #28 02-05-2021, 06:41 PM

[QUOTE=cube;4325877]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Surfnturf

Given CO is lighter than air should not the detector be placed higher in the tent?

Does anyone know if those battery operated CO detectors work in the cold?

I know that the personal monitors from BW technologies work in all weather as I wear one at work. They are on sale on Amazon right now for $140. Not exactly sure how you would bump test them without a station though?

CBintheNorth · #29 02-05-2021, 11:13 PM

[QUOTE=cube;4325877]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Surfnturf

Given CO is lighter than air should not the detector be placed higher in the tent?

Does anyone know if those battery operated CO detectors work in the cold?

Mine says it works down to 4°C. My tent is usually above that.

cube · #30 02-08-2021, 09:02 AM

[QUOTE=CBintheNorth;4326100]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cube

Mine says it works down to 4°C. My tent is usually above that.

I am not sure what the temperature in the upper portion of my tent is when I have the portable buddy going (the midsized one) but I still have to skim the ice off my hole periodically so I know that at ice level it is still below zero.

Thanks