News

Minn. Mom Behind CO Detector Giveaway

03/30/2015

March 30--ORONOCO -- Melissa Griggs has spent much of the last 11 years finding her purpose.

On Saturday, she watched it unfold as nearly 400 carbon monoxide detectors went out the door of the Oronoco Fire Department.

"What's cool about this is that it's actually doing something," Griggs said. "I've spent 10 years talking, talking, talking, and to be getting detectors and putting them in ... it's just cool."

She's a reluctant expert on the dangers of carbon monoxide after a malfunctioning furnace in the family's home resulted in the death of her 3-year-old daughter, Hannah Jane.

March 19, 2004

Griggs woke up about two hours after going to bed, thinking she needed to use the bathroom. It's the last thing she remembers.

Her husband, Jason, called 911 after hearing Melissa fall, then he, too, was overcome.

Jerry Lubahn, a volunteer firefighter for Oronoco, was one of the first four responders on the scene.

"We had no idea what was going on," he said Saturday. "A deputy came out and told us there were people unconscious inside. Melissa was leaned up against the bathroom door; Jason was incoherent. It was chaotic. Nothing made sense."

It was several minutes before an EMT with Gold Cross Ambulance figured it out, Lubahn said.

Carbon monoxide is a toxic gas, but it's odorless, colorless, tasteless and non-irritating, making detection difficult. A reading of 100 parts per million is considered dangerous; the Griggs' home registered 990 ppm.

In addition to the family, six responders also had to be treated that night, including Lubahn, a pair of deputies and two paramedics.

Lubahn had remained in the home with Griggs, determined to get her out of the house after other responders were overcome by the fumes.

"I saw someone drag Jason out, and when I looked outside, I saw everybody on their hands and knees," Lubahn said, realizing he was on his own. "I was giving her oxygen, so I'd move the tank ahead, then pull her (on a backboard) forward; move the tank ahead, then pull her forward, until we got out."

Griggs calls Lubahn her hero; he waves her off.

"He really is," she said. "He pulled for 20 minutes to get me out the back door. Had he not done that, I never would have lived."

Hannah, they learned later, was already dead when responders arrived. CPR was unsuccessful.

Eight-month-old Calli, in an adjoining room, was fine, thanks to new carpet in her bedroom.

"Her room was essentially sealed off, because the carpet made the door really hard to open," Griggs said, "but Hannah's room was above the furnace. It was a fluke malfunction in the middle of the night."

Hannah's Law

The Griggs' home had passed inspection when they moved in three months before the poisoning, but they later learned the inspection wasn't done completely or correctly.

"We're not furnace people," Griggs said. "We didn't know any better. We didn't have a detector because it wasn't the law."

It is now, thanks to the family's determination to save others. "Hannah's Law," Minnesota statute 299F.51, was passed in 2007, mandating CO detectors in every home in the state.

"We took our tragedy to the Legislature and got laws passed," she said.

Still, said Tina Stolp, a firefighter and EMT for Oronoco, the most recent census numbers indicate that about 60 percent of residents within Oronoco and Oronoco Township don't have the detectors.

"It means a lot to us to keep this community safe," Stolp said Saturday as she helped distribute the detectors. "We want to make sure their story doesn't happen again. When they hurt, we hurt, too."

She realizes the effect of tragedy on everyone: Lubahn is her father.

"My dad could've died that night," she said. "These are safeguards for the responders, too."

The detectors

Thanks to several sponsors and a fundraising event, about $6,000 was raised initially. Even though they're purchasing the detectors wholesale -- and have had batteries donated -- Griggs and the firefighters have a lofty goal.

"This is an ongoing, infinite program," Griggs said. "Anyone in Oronoco Township or the city of Oronoco is eligible." There is no cost to any resident.

Andy Mallan, who moved to Oronoco with his family about 18 months ago, picked up three detectors for his home.

The detectors in his home are due to be replaced -- they expire in five to seven years, so the distribution came at a great time.

"It's one of those things you know you should do, but you don't always make the time," Mallan said. "It's great to be part of a community that takes care of its residents."

Appointments for pickup, delivery or installation can be made by going to oronocofire.com, calling 367-4440 or stopping at the fire hall at 20 Second St. NW.

But not just carbon monoxide detectors, Stolp said. As the firefighters made their way Saturday through homes in Oronoco Estates, a mobile home park, they replaced batteries in smoke detectors as well or replaced the detectors completely.

"We want to continue to do this indefinitely," she said, adding that as their progress is monitored, it provides valuable information for the possibility of grant money.

"In a very literal sense, carbon monoxide poisoning is 100 percent preventable," Griggs said. "I've spent my time bringing awareness and education to make sure no other mother has to have the life I've had. And to do something with the pain, like this? It helps a lot."

CO detectors

Residents of Oronoco and Oronoco Township are eligible for free carbon monoxide detectors.

Appointments for pick-up, delivery or installation can be made by going to oronocofire.com, calling 367-4440, or stopping at the fire hall at 20 Second St. NW.