Two 19 year olds overcome by carbom monoxide

Red Mud · May 5, 2012

Two 19 year old young men die from carbon monoxide while cleaning out a 30' hand dug well, this happened not far from me. This was several days ago and there wasn't a lot of info as to why this happened. The fisher county newspaper is mailed to me and it's always several days late. Today it says they lowered a gas powered pump into the well to pump out the water that was seeping in while they were cleaning the well. How sad it is that two 19 year old boys didn't know what would happen if they breathed exhaust fumes.
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wisbaker · May 5, 2012

My heart goes out to their families. Unfortunately in today's society we are not preparing our young people to accomplish tasks like this. More often we are employees and not business owners so as parents we don't work alongside our children. They may be exposed to safety requirements for working in situations like this but so much of the basics required to work safely are obfuscated in OSHA rules and what's important and what's not doesn't reach our children. Or to look at it another way as the liberals say it takes a community, I don't feel our current society has as much interaction among generations as it used to so our young people don't learn as much form the elders of our community. 23 years ago a neighbor of ours who farmed was killed in a traffic accident, I mourned his passing and felt loss because he was no longer their for me to seek advice and hear about things that happened before I was born or moved to that community, he was 35 years older than me, but I still counted him as a friend. I don't think that occurs as much as it used to.

GeneMO · May 5, 2012

That is a real bad deal. But shouldn't two 19 year olds had more sense than to do something that dumb?

Gene

Red Mud · May 5, 2012

I taught my kids when they were small not to stand near a car tail pipe when the engine was running, told them never start their engine until the garage door was open and they were ready to leave. since my kids are girls I didn't need to tell them not to put a gasoline powered pump in a well they were cleaning, and they knew why I told them not to breathe exhaust fumes. I just can't believe two 19 year old boys didn't know better than to do what they did.

Earl Gray · May 5, 2012

Sad. Evolution at work.

dpendzic · May 5, 2012

every time we have an extended power outage in my area there are cases of family"s getting CO poisoning or even death from the generator they brought into the house for electricity. Sign of our times in suburbia!

shaun wallace · May 5, 2012

Seen article in Abilene paper and wondered if put in well or setting to close to hole. With the way wind been blowing here didnt think would drift in to well.

Tony in Mass. · May 5, 2012

Even if the pump was topside that's dangerous. During the ice storm here, some one nearly died in his cellar- nearly all houses have full basements, the genset was on the lawn outside the cellar window- exhaust sinks, and filled up to the height of the open window, the tv and radio were full of warnings, for people with power to hear it...

RCP · May 5, 2012

It sounds to me like these two gentleman were trying to do something good, and there was a mistake made. For all of those *ssholes who make comments about the mistake, are there any of you who have never made a mistake, if you say you have never made a mistake you are a liar.

Richard Peoples

fixerupper · May 5, 2012

Very heartless and inappropriate to put shame on these young men while their families are torn apart with grief. We have all survived big mistakes we made. We wouldn't be typing on our keyboards if we didn't. You obviously haven't had to bury a child!!! Jim

Anonymous-0 · May 5, 2012

They Just werent thinking.SADLY . People Make FATAL MISTAKES.. Case in POINT .... 35 yrs ago ,,i agreed to clean a widowed ladies cistern for her ..on a whim , my bride to be was giving me a hand above ground , All was going Well ,Then i heard them arguing above me ?? . the old lady had me scrubbing the walls with a CUT clorox water solution , THAT was BAD ENUF !! and she now wanted to add some ammonia to it ,,Thankfully my GAL knew from HOME - EC Class HOW DANGEROUS THAT WOULD BECOME ,And She stopped HER, SHE PROBABLY SAVED MY LIFE ,, because i was just wanting to get the job done ..i would have faithfully scrubbed it on,, thinking everyone knew what they were doing..Funny Thing Is The OLD LADY WAS NOT CONVINCED how dangerous it was,,

2x4 · May 5, 2012

that can happen in a dug well without a motor being within a mile! Down in a hand dug well Carbon DIOXIDE will kill you just as easily. They test them by lowing a candle into the well & if it goes out, no oxygen! Old time well diggers have died this way; they kept a man above with a blower or fan to keep air in the bottom of the well. I heard about it from the oldtimers when I was young.

Ralph Bauer · May 6, 2012

Simple carbon monoxide detector that we had in all flight school aircraft at Louisiana Tech U. A quarter sized dot of some concoction on a small piece of plastic velcroed to the dash in plain sight. If it did change color, you had unhealthy carbon monoxide levels in the cabin. I think it cost like 2 bucks back in the late 80s and early 90s.
Going into a well is like going into a mine. That's why they took canaries with them to work (extra sensitive to C.M.) in the old days.....
Sad deal though.

Anonymous-0 · May 6, 2012

That happened once that I remember, over here..OZ. Second fella topside went down to check on his mate.. Both gone. Also had an engine down the well.

Ultradog MN · May 6, 2012

I tend to agree with Gene. One can and should have some compassion for their families as it IS a very sad affair. But compassion does not make what the kids did any less foolish.

Two 19 year olds overcome by carbom monoxide

Red Mud

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wisbaker

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GeneMO

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Red Mud

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Earl Gray

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dpendzic

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shaun wallace

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Tony in Mass.

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RCP

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fixerupper

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Anonymous-0

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2x4

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Ralph Bauer

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Anonymous-0

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Ultradog MN

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