5 hospitalized with carbon monoxide poisoning after leak at Salem office building

SALEM, Mass. — Five people were taken to the hospital and hundreds were forced to evacuate following a hazmat incident at a Salem office building.

Hazmat crews were called to the Shetland Park Building around 8:30 Wednesday morning after a woman was found unconscious on the fourth-floor. That woman, along with four others, were taken to the hospital with carbon monoxide poisoning. Three of the victims have been released from the hospital.

Danielle Salvi knew something bad had happened when she walked up to 35 Congress St. Wednesday morning.

Salvi, who works nearby, said there were “A couple of ambulances, tons of fire trucks."

Officials say two of the five victims' CO levels were 40 parts per million, which is just at the dangerous mark. They were taken to Mass General's Hyperbaric Center. Thirty-seven other employees detected positive for carbon monoxide but decided not to be treated.

The leak was so bad, investigators say one woman was found unconscious.

The victims work for Excelitas Technologies, a company that manufactures equipment for the military.

“We were told just to abandon the building," said Kevin O'Connor, employee.

Ashley Springett, who works on the first floor, said: "It’s definitely concerning, like you don’t want to be in there."

"They were just in the production area — there's processes they start every morning to produce the equipment, and they were just getting started with their day when this woman fell ill," said Salem Fire Deputy Chief Alan Dionne.

Officials say the source of the leak was a heating unit on the fourth floor. That floor will be closed on Thursday while the rest of the building will be open.

The 700,000 square foot building, which is a multi-purpose building with several different offices inside, did not have carbon monoxide alarms. The complex is owned by the investment company Prime Group.

Wednesday night, Fire Chief Gerry Giunta inspected the fourth floor with a crew from National Grid.

Giunta believes the leak may have been going on for a while, because others had reported feeling sick in the past.

"There was a few people um that were feeling systemic flu like symptoms which is indicative of CO and they just went home feeling will – it was never reported to anyone," Giunta said.

He said the fourth floor's heating system is old and needs to be replaced.

Salvi believes the laws could stand to be updated too. She believes carbon monoxide detectors should be in every office building.

"The law should require that you have them," she said.

The building owner sent Boston 25 News the following statement:

"This morning, we were made aware of an incident involving apparently hazardous fumes within a tenant's unit in one of the buildings at Shetland Park. The areas directly impacted were evacuated immediately by the Salem Fire Department. All remaining areas within the building were subsequently evacuated as a precautionary measure. The building will remain closed until it is deemed safe to re-enter. We greatly appreciate the efforts of the Salem Fire Department and other first responders for their timely response and assistance with those evacuated. We will continue to work with all appropriate authorities to ensure the safety of our tenants, visitors and staff."

We also reached out to Excelitas Technologies for comment. We have not yet heard back.

Wednesday night, there was a notice on the front door that lets workers know the building will be back open on Thursday, except for the fourth floor. There's no word on when that floor will be opened back up for business.

Cox Media Group