Fire Department

Firefighters forced the evacuation of a Jenewein Road apartment complex overnight following a carbon monoxide incident. Nobody became sick as the leak was caught and reported quickly thanks to a working carbon monoxide detector in the building.

Ladder Company 7 responded to 4711 Jenewein Road just before 1:30 a.m. following reports of a carbon monoxide alarm activation. Nobody was evacuating as firefighters arrived, but handheld air monitors showed CO levels inside the building ranging from 40-60 parts per million inside individual apartments to 100 parts per million in a second-floor hallway.

Firefighters activated the building’s fire alarm to initiate evacuation, and MPD was called in to assist the evacuation. MGE was also called to help investigate the cause of the CO leak.

As residents found refuge in the complex’s Community Room or in their personal vehicles, one resident approached firefighters to say that they’d noticed a vehicle in the parking garage that had been running for an extended period of time. Private security video confirmed that this vehicle had been running in the garage, releasing notable exhaust, for about an hour that evening, and this is believed to be the source of the carbon monoxide that was infiltrating the building. This investigation led building managers to realize the garage’s exhaust fan was not working and needed to be repaired.

Firefighters set up a series of fans to ventilate the complex and garage. The fire alarm was reset, and firefighters assisted people back into their apartments. Those who use the parking garage were told to move their vehicles to the street until the exhaust system is repaired.