Article: AS TEMPERATURES FALL, CALLS TO UTILITIES RISE ; Carbon monoxide can build up while fireplaces are burning

As cold weather bore down on the region last weekend, 63 calls poured into Colorado Springs Utilities about possible carbon monoxide exposure or natural gas leaks.

That's more than twice as many calls as Utilities gets during a typical December weekend, Utilities spokesman Dave Grossman said.

No one was injured, but one household was found to have a carbon monoxide problem that could have been deadly had the family not called for help.

Many of the calls stemmed from people using fireplaces, which can suck air from furnace and hot-water-heating vent pipes, causing carbon monoxide buildup, Utilities operations superintendent Greg Smith said.

"The conditions have to be just right," he said, ...

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