Update
The Prince William County Fire Marshal has confirmed some information about what took place on Friday night.
The vent pipe from the hot water heater to the boiler had rusted through. This caused CO to leak into the building, according to the Fire Marshal. The store has remained closed while there are ongoing repairs.
Original Story
The Prince William Fire & Rescue Department was called to Super Suds Laundromat on Bel Air Road last night around 6p.m. to assist an unconscious patient.
“We received a 9-1-1 call, requesting for an unconcscious patient. Units arrived on the scene, to discover that more than one patient was down, so we treated a total of five patients in all,” said Battalion Chief Dewayne Spitzer.
When the crew entered the building they found all five victims in various states of consciousness, according to Spitzer.
There were no visible signs of smoke or damage to the building when they arrived, and the Fire & Rescue Department is currently investigating to find the cause. They did state that CO2 levels in the building were high.
“We’ve secured the building for power and gas. It may be a faulty dryer – but we’ll have to do an investigation to find out exactly what’s going on,” Spitzer commented.
One victim was airlifted by helicopter from Rippon Middle School in Woodbridge. The other four victims were brought to local hospitals by ambulance.
