An Oak Bay family forced from their home by high carbon monoxide levels has hired an independent environmental monitoring service to gauge their safety.
“We have a plan to move forward. We’re trying to be as co-operative as we can while advocating for our safety,” Chris Robertson said Thursday.
On Friday, after blasting started on the empty lot beside their Woodlawn Crescent house, Chris and his wife, Joanne, arrived home and heard the carbon monoxide alarm ordering them to leave the property. Firefighters investigated but could not find the cause. The house was vented and the family went back inside.
But on Monday, after blasting resumed, the carbon monoxide alarm sounded again. This time, firefighters found high levels of carbon monoxide and discovered the gas was entering through a floor drain in a crawl space connected to the house perimeter drains.
They ordered the Robertsons to leave until the source of the carbon monoxide could be found and minimized.
The Robertsons believe there is a correlation between the high carbon monoxide levels and the blasting.
“It does happen and it’s especially seen in areas with naturally fractured rock and underground water, both of which are features of Bowker Creek watershed,” Chris said.
If it is the cause, it’s very rare, the Oak Bay municipality said in a statement.
“There is a possible connection between the blasting and the release of carbon monoxide from the ground,” the municipality said.
On Tuesday, Oak Bay placed a stop-work order on blasting at the empty lot beside their house in case it is the cause of high carbon monoxide levels.
In the meantime, the Robertsons, their two children and their pets are staying at the Oak Bay Beach Hotel until it is safe to return to their home.
They have hired Island EHS to install a carbon monoxide detector that will log and record carbon monoxide levels 24 hours a day. The company will report its findings to the blaster and to the Robertsons.
The couple also hired a plumber Thursday to plug the pipe where the gas enters the house.
The blasting company did not return a request for comment.
Blasting on the property is expected to last another week. The Robertsons say they won’t go home until they get the OK from a professional, which could be up to seven days after the last blast.
“That’s getting pretty close to Christmas,” Joanne said. “I would like to have Christmas in our home, with our family, who are planning to come to be with us.”
One positive thing to come out of their plight is the fact that people are going out to buy carbon monoxide detectors for their homes.
“That’s great. It saved us. It could save somebody else,” Chris said.
