Firefighters responded to a suspicious smell and reports of guests expressing symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning at the Wingate Inn in Stafford. Guests and a conference were evacuated, along with hotel employees, who waited in the parking lot and were provided water and air conditioned buses to wait. /Rebecca Sell/The Free Lance-Star

Bette John (right), from Houston, waits outside of the Wingate Inn as firefighters ventilate the building after seven people were taken to the hospital for carbon monoxide exposure. John, a guest at the hotel, waited outside until her husband could come and pick her up. /Rebecca Sell/The Free Lance-Star

Hotel guests taken to hospital after carbon monoxide leak.

Date published: 7/27/2006

Seven Stafford County hotel guests were taken to Mary Washington Hospital this morning as the result of a carbon monoxide leak, Cathy Riddle, a county spokesperson, said.

Four of those transported had potentially serious injuries, while the other three sustained what Riddle described as less serious injuries.

Fire and rescue personnel responded to the Wingate Inn at 20 Sanford Drive around 9:30 a.m. after a caller reported a gas leak inside the hotel.

Responders first searched all four floors of the hotel to ensure that the 118 people inside were safely evacuated, Riddle said. At the time of the call, 80 people inside were attending a conference, 18 were hotel workers and 20 were hotel guests.

Members of the county's Hazmat team then discovered the leak in the boiler room on the first floor. Once they shut the boilers down the carbon monoxide levels began to decrease.

They are now ventilating the hotel and hope to reopen it later today. As of noon, crews were still working to clear out the carbon monoxide.

The county brought in two air-conditioned school buses for those evacuated to wait in, Riddle said.

-Brian Baer, fredericksburg.com

Date published: 7/27/2006

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