The temperatures have dropped but emergency calls for carbon monoxide poisoning have risen. 

High River's Fire Chief Cody Zebedee says they've had a big increase in alarm activations over the past few days, and he's expecting more to come in.

"Since this past weekend (Sunday, January 12) we've actually responded to four Carbon Monoxide alarm activations already which is definitely higher than what we typically see."

Zebedee says on average the department will see 15-20 CO alarms come in, so to have four in one week is unusual.

According to Chief Zebedee it's just something that comes along with these cold snaps.

"I think we see an increase in these calls due to a few reasons." He adds "People quite often have problems with the exhaust vents on their homes, specially higher efficiency furnaces where those vents are lower to the ground, you can get ice and snow buildup. As the furnace continues venting there is condensation that comes out of that exhaust vent which forms ice. If that builds up to the point where it blocks the exhaust from your hot water tank or boiler  or what ever it may be then it pushes air and gasses back into the home."

One late night call on Tuesday, January 14 in High River was due to exactly that. 

Fortunately the family had a carbon monoxide detector and were alerted to the problem so there were no injuries as a result.

Zebedee also warns residents there are other ways you may unknowingly contributing to the Carbon Monoxide levels in your home.

"The other place where we do see an increase in CO levels in some cases is when people are using wood burning stoves or fireplaces." He adds "We can have something called a downdraft happen and that's when cold air pushes the smoke and carbon monoxide back into the home. When a wood burning stove or something is burning, we should have some source of fresh air coming into our home."

He explains fires inside a home can quickly dissipate the oxygen in the building and suggest cracking a window or have a cold air return in your home, and that running a vehicle in an attached garage even with the door open is not 100 per cent safe.

Carbon Monoxide detectors should be installed in every floor of your home suggests Zebedee, and they should be tested often to ensure they're still working, have good battery life and ensure the alarm is not expired.

Zebedee says there are symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning that you should watch out for, in case your alarm doesn't activate.

"We start to see what we refer to as flu like symptoms so you'll be tired, experience headaches and shortness of breath and you'll see it start to effect motor functions in people which looks like muscle weakness or loss of control in your legs or arms."

He says higher concentrations or longer exposure times can lead to dizziness, chest pains, vision problems, having a hard time thinking and nausea.

In the worst case scenario, carbon monoxide poisoning can look like convulsions, unconsciousness and then eventually death.

If you believe you're experiencing carbon monoxide poisoning Zebedee suggests calling 9-1-1 and evacuating all people and pets into a warm area outside of the house such as a vehicle (as long as it's outside of your garage) or a neighbouring home.

For more information on CO safety, click here. 

Send us your news tips, story ideas and comments at news@highriveronline.com