Brian Shane | Delmarva Now

OCEAN CITY -- No fines have been levied against a condo building, evacuated after a recent carbon monoxide leak, for not having detectors as required by law.

Unsafe levels of carbon monoxide sent a family of six staying at the El Capitan condominium to the hospital the evening of June 11. The eight-story building was evacuated and ventilated before residents were allowed back inside. The building had no carbon monoxide detectors, said Fire Marshal Sam Villani.

Ocean City requires all multi-family buildings to have a carbon monoxide detector in each dwelling unit. Failure to comply is a municipal infraction that carries a $1,000 fine.

The law, which took effect in February, was passed by resort officials in the aftermath of the 2006 death of a Pennsylvania father and daughter from carbon monoxide poisoning in their hotel room.

Buck Mann, property manager of the El Capitan, said carbon monoxide detectors are the unit owner's responsibility. Mann said he's notified all property owners through the mail ever since the council passed the law in 2007 mandating their installation within 24 months.

Mann also said the only natural gas was in the building's basement, where there were no carbon monoxide detectors. No other condo units had gas-operated machinery, Mann added.

Villani's office ultimately determined that a Ray Pak-brand swimming pool water heater in the basement was leaking the colorless and odorless gas into the family's first-floor unit at Fourth Street and the Boardwalk. The family was treated at Atlantic General Hospital and subsequently released.

The fire marshal is charged with inspecting multi-family units and new construction single-family homes. Villani said his office in 2007 launched an "immense" public awareness campaign that notified building managers, condo associations, homeowner associations, and also sent out notifications with water bills and in area newspapers.

He said his office is planning to mount another media blitz, and would even go door-to-door to get the word out, if need be.

Jo Ann Vogel, who owns a third-floor unit with husband Bud, said a fire truck pulled onto the Boardwalk at about 9:30 p.m. that day, and an announcement was made over a loudspeaker for all El Capitan residents to evacuate. Police and firefighters came knocking to make sure all had vacated, and checked carbon monoxide levels with hand-held devices, she said.

Vogel was "totally impressed" with how emergency responders handled the situation, noting how two city buses were made available as a place for residents to rest while firefighters scoured the building. She also said she was pleased that property manager Buck Mann had other lodging prepared and available for residents, just in case.

"It was a top-notch job," she said. "I don't think it could shave been handled better. It makes me feel far more comfortable in case of a major event, that the city's on top of it. It's just a real frightening thing, and you hope that you're not damaging a life because of carbon monoxide."

Vogel said emergency responders broke through doors to gain entry into individual condo units to see if there were still people inside who needed medical attention. She said she was very pleased that the property manager had workers on the scene to repair the doors immediately. On the door of her third-floor unit, fresh white paint was still drying on her repaired doorjamb.

She also said she doesn't recall getting any notifications in the mail about installation of carbon monoxide detectors. "It could have happened, but I don't recall seeing it. It wasn't a separate letter, to my knowledge," she said.

Carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless and tasteless gas with high levels of toxicity. Exposures at 100 parts per million can be life-threatening. Early symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include headaches, nausea and fatigue, and often are mistaken for a viral infection like the flu.