New Zealand Mom And Kids Succumb To Carbon Monoxide, Garage Was Closed

4 lives where lost due to a closed garage and a running car.

According to The Press based out of New Zealand earlier today (July 2, 2015) four lives where lost due to a Mom leaving her car running with the garage closed. According to sources, the Mom had tried to keep the battery of the car, “ticking over” or kept charging while the car was running. Unfortunately for the community and authorities, they found the Mom and all three kids lying motionless upon discovery. It was a simple case of Carbon Monoxide poisoning gone wrong and while we grieve the loss of lives, their example serves as a sobering reminder to never warm up your car inside any enclosed space for any amount of time. /

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First of all, it’s a misconception that cars need to be warmed up at all before driving. Oftentimes, the best way to warm up a car and keep everything in tip-top shape is to drive it gently upon initial startup. Warming up a car actually can prove detrimental to the life of an engine over time and causes unnecessary wear and tear as well as excessive gas consumption.

According to a study by Iowa State, the amount of time it takes for a car running in an enclosed space to reach deadly levels is as little as eight minutes. The fact that many people warm up cars in the winter only exacerbates the problem as cars compensate for colder temperatures by opening up their throttle bodies wider to decrease warm up time but at the same time increasing the amount of carbon monoxide concentration. The best practice calls for all car passengers to be in the vehicle and ready to go once you turn the key. Then the driver should immediately back out of the garage and shut the garage door.

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