Family of 6 killed by carbon monoxide from generator

Around Sunday noon, the bodies of six people, including two children and two teenagers, were found in a house in Ben Cat Town of Binh Duong, neighboring Ho Chi Minh City.

The discovery was made by friends who had failed to contact the family by phone.

The victims are a married couple aged 47 and 37, their three children aged 2, 7 and 15, and a nephew aged 15.

A power generator was found near the back of the house.

Police said Monday that the six had been killed by carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning emitted by the generator.

The neighborhood they were living in lost power between 5 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. Sunday and the family had used the generator overnight with all doors and windows closed.

The portable power generator found at the back of the house where six people were killed in Binh Duong Province's Ben Cat Town, July 24, 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Yen Khanh

According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, portable back-up generators produce the poison CO, which is an odorless, colorless gas that kills without warning. It warns that people should never use a generator inside their home or garage, even if doors and windows are open.

Doctor Nguyen Trung Nguyen, director of Poison Control Center at Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi said CO has no smell and color and is very difficult to detect. When someone inhales it, CO quickly penetrates the blood and reduces oxygen levels in the blood, causing that person headaches, dizziness, nausea, chest pain, and confusion.

People who inhale large amounts of CO can pass out and die very quickly, especially pregnant women, young children, the elderly with chronic heart and lung diseases, he said.