Lawmaker introduces a bill to put carbon monoxide detectors in schools after a leak in Crandon sickened 39

It's been less than a week since Crandon Elementary School traced an "unknown illness" to a faulty furnace and, already, a state representative has introduced a law that would require schools to install carbon monoxide detectors in Wisconsin schools.

It took nearly a day for authorities to determine the symptoms sickening students, staff and EMS workers came from a carbon monoxide leak in one of the elementary school's boilers, a length of time that state Rep. David Steffen, R-Howard, said in a press release "could have been avoided with a simple detector."

Steffen announced Tuesday morning the bill would add carbon monoxide detectors to its indoor environmental air quality plan, which all schools are required by law to have. To his surprise, carbon monoxide detectors weren't included in that plan — and he wasn't alone.

"When I spoke with several other elected officials and individuals who were active in our schools, they were surprised that such a requirement did not exist," Steffen told USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin. "Hundreds of people die every year due to carbon monoxide poisoning. Yet, it is incredibly easy and inexpensive to prevent."

Should the bill pass, Wisconsin would only be the sixth state to adopt a bill requiring carbon monoxide detectors in its schools, joining Connecticut, Florida, Maryland, Rhode Island and Utah.

Steffen isn't the only one who's responded to Friday's incident. State Rep. Lee Snodgrass, D-Appleton, responded on Facebook to concerned Appleton resident Ashley Wilson, who's been pushing for a bill to require carbon monoxide detectors in all Wisconsin schools. The Crandon incident has resurfaced a conversation in her office about a bill possibility.

And Gov. Tony Evers stated on X, formerly Twitter, Monday that he'll be "working on a plan to help address this issue" as part of the upcoming biennial budget.

That there is already bipartisan support for carbon monoxide detector requirements in schools bodes well for Steffen, who hasn't even drafted the bill text.

"If this is an opportunity for bipartisanship, I welcome it," Steffen said. "We haven't seen many of those this session. But I think this is one that's going to be an easy bipartisan effort."

What happened at Crandon Elementary School?

Reports of a mystery illness started coming in Thursday afternoon from students and staff alike at Crandon Elementary School, symptoms of which included lightheadedness, slurred speech, shortness of breath and an elevated pulse. In a statement released Thursday, Forest County Sheriff's Office said those individuals were transported to the hospital.

Crandon School District evacuated students from the building mid-afternoon Thursday, canceling all school activities Thursday and Friday, in order to allow authorities to investigate the cause, according to a statement released Friday by Kirby Schultz, Crandon School District's interim administration. A preliminary investigation by local authorities, which included its two police dogs, didn't churn up any immediate causes of the illness.

By Friday, hazmat teams from Oneida County and Wausau descended on the scene. They determined it was a mechanical issue with a furnace that created elevated levels of carbon monoxide in the schools, according to a Friday statement from the Forest County Sheriff's Office.

All told, 39 people, including students, staff and EMS workers, were treated at area hospitals for symptoms related to carbon monoxide exposure. Of those 39 people, two had heightened levels of carbon monoxide in their symptoms, according to the Forest County Sheriff's Office.

Then, on Monday, Schultz announced the elementary school would remain closed until April 2, to allow time for "inspection, cleaning and maintenance" of all HVAC components in the building.

USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin has reached out to Schultz and the Crandon School District about whether it has carbon monoxide detectors in its schools or if this incident will create a push to include detectors in its schools going forward. So far, the district has yet to respond to multiple requests for information.

Wait. Wisconsin schools aren't required to have carbon monoxide detectors installed?

No. State law doesn't require carbon monoxide detectors in schools, even though they're required on every floor of a Wisconsin home.

Steffen had expected Wisconsin to be one of the few states to not have this requirement, but it turns out, a majority of states — 45 along with the District of Columbia — don't require carbon monoxide detectors in schools.

How will this bill work?

It's early in the process, but Steffen said that, with all the millions of dollars that go toward school safety, the expenses of purchasing and installing carbon monoxide detectors should be a drop in the bucket.

Steffen is referring to the Office of School Safety grant program through the state Department of Justice that secured $1.34 million in American Rescue Plan Act dollars for the 2023-24 school year. Grants for school safety are currently available to public, private and tribal schools. Steffen's proposal would add a grant program under that section for carbon monoxide detectors.

"My thought is to have that program increase or expand its eligibility to include carbon monoxide detectors as an eligible expense," Steffen said, who noted that doing it this way will ensure the state doesn't need to create any additional appropriation.

Ultimately, the goal is for schools to be able to install carbon monoxide detectors and easily be reimbursed through the existing state program.

It will require the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction to contact the state's 421 public school districts to determine which districts don't currently have carbon monoxide detectors throughout their school buildings.

Why is carbon monoxide dangerous?

Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that results from the incomplete burning of various fuels and can cause significant health issues, including death, when inhaled in high concentrations for long periods of time. Not even police dogs deployed from the Forest County Sheriff's Office on Friday could locate the source of the leak due to its odorless nature.

Each year, about 500 Wisconsinites go to the emergency room for carbon monoxide exposure and 400 people in the United States die per year from carbon monoxide poisoning.

According to Wisconsin Department of Health Services, carbon monoxide can build up from burning any fuel type in common household appliances, including idling cars in a closed garage; water heaters or clothes dryers; furnaces, boilers, wood stoves, fireplaces, or space heaters; ranges/stoves, cooktops, or wall ovens; and portable generators.

In recent years, schools across the state have reached dangerous carbon monoxide levels. In the Cambridge Commons dorm room at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 17 students were hospitalized due to a faulty boiler in February 2022.

Reporting revealed the university didn't have carbon monoxide detectors in its living quarters. In light of the carbon monoxide exposure that led to 400 students evacuating their dorm, the university installed detectors in all their dorms in the days following the incident.

What's next?

Steffen plans to have a draft of this bill ready for the start of the 2024-25 school year.

In the meantime, Steffen will be coordinating with state Reps. Jeffrey Mursau, R-Crivitz, and Rob Swearingen, R-Rhinelander, who live and work in close proximity to Crandon, as well as education experts and school districts to make sure the language of the bill is workable for all parties.

""The goal is to provide protection without it being an onerous mandate," Steffen said. "And I think we can meet those expectations and find a nexus between safety and cost-effective solutions."

Natalie Eilbert covers mental health issues for USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin. She welcomes story tips and feedback. You can reach her at neilbert@gannett.com or view her Twitter profile at @natalie_eilbert. If you or someone you know is dealing with suicidal thoughts, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or text "Hopeline" to the National Crisis Text Line at 741-741.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: A new bill would put carbon monoxide detectors in Wisconsin schools