A 2014 carbon monoxide leak at the North Mac MIddle School has led to a law mandating installation of CO alarms in Illinois schools
A 2014 carbon monoxide leak at the North Mac MIddle School has led to a law mandating installation of CO alarms in Illinois schools.
llinois schools must be equipped by Jan. 1 with carbon monoxide alarms under legislation that has been signed by Gov. Bruce Rauner.
The Southern Illinoisan says lawmakers approved the legislation in June. Lawmakers were spurred to action after a carbon monoxide leak in 2014 at the North Mac Middle School in Girard, Ill.
About 140 students and teachers were taken to an area hospital for treatment after a carbon monoxide leak was detected in a water heater vent. Following the incident, the North Mac school district purchased its own alarms.
The law directs schools to install carbon monoxide alarms in each school building.
Mike Kennedy has been writing about education for American School & University since 1999. He also has reported on schools and other topics for The Chicago Tribune, The Kansas City Star, The Kansas City Times and City News Bureau of Chicago. He is a graduate of Michigan State University.
