Warrick Co. officials hold meeting over high CO2 levels from Friday’s rain

WARRICK CO., Ind. (WFIE) - In Warrick County, residents are becoming concerned about Carbon Dioxide in their basements.

We told you yesterday how acid rain can react with limestone in former mining operations.

Officials are meeting about the reports out of Warrick County of people struggling to breathe during Friday’s storms as they took cover in their basements.

On Tuesday, the neighborhood gathered at Zoar United Church of Christ to talk about how to prevent anyone from being hurt.

This meeting not only let residents know how they can help with this issue, but also showed just how widespread the issue is.

Local emergency workers are working to see if it can be prevented.

Kenneth Wills lost his sister on Friday after she passed out in her basement taking shelter from a storm.

While the coroner still needs to determine the exact cause of Margie Quates’s death, he and many others believe it was due to an overabundance of carbon dioxide.

“Everything that can make the right storm made the right storm for her to have a lack of oxygen,” says Willis.

Experts say acid rain plus limestone in the earth in former mining sites can release carbon dioxide.

That gas will flow toward a basement because of its relative low pressure, and its an issue Boonville Fire Chief Steven Byers says is affecting more and more people.

“This is something that’s been going on for years, but no one has shared that information, it’s never been put out to the public,” says Byers.

Kenneth says he’s glad the community was able to tackle the issue head on.

“She would’ve wanted this too because there’s just no reason for this to ever happen again,” says Willis.

The group shared a link that has some information you can use if you think your home is experiencing this problem: rc-tech.net/co2/.

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