(Volo, IL January 1, 2001)The American Boating and Yachting Council (ABYC) has announced that it will recommend the installation of carbon monoxide (CO) alarms on boats with closed accommodation compartments.Further, the ABYC’s recommended standard for boat CO detectors is UL 2034, which calls for standards for CO Alarms manufactured by Marine Technologies, Inc. (MTI).
Effective January 1, 2001, The American Boating and Yachting Council (ABYC), the regulatory arm of the boating industry, recommends but does not require that all boats with enclosed heads, galleys and sleeping areas install CO alarms.According to Tom Wisniewski, President of MTI, this is a positive step toward safer boating.
We are extremely pleased that the ABYC has made this recommendation and that our product, which meets the stringent safety standards of UL 2034, is available for consumers immediately, Wisniewski said.Now we strongly encourage boaters and manufacturers to heed this recommendation and install MTI CO Alarms on their boats.
In 1995, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) published a report stating that CO poisoning is a serious hazard associated with recreational boating and encouraged the installation of CO alarms on boats.
CO poisoning causes flu like symptoms including headache, nausea and
fatigue and is often misdiagnosed as seasickness.Carbon monoxide poisonings have caused nine deaths and 102 injuries at a lake straddling Arizona and Utah, leading investigators to fear houseboat exhaust may be sickening boaters across America.Seven of the deaths and two-thirds of the poisonings, highlighted in a report by the Arizona Republic newspaper, were associated with the exhaust
from electric generators on privately owned houseboats.
Low levels or background levels of CO are normally found in recreational boating.While engine exhaust is the typical cause, other sources are generators, portable space heaters, defective exhaust systems and other boats.
Marine Technologies, Inc., the first UL approved manufacturer of CO detectors for the marine market, has served the boating industry since 1979, providing safety products to original equipment manufacturers and marine retailers across the United States.
For further information on Marine Technologies, Inc. contact:
Marine Technologies, Inc.
1000 Brown Street Suite #107
Wauconda, IL60084
(800) 383-0269