Oakland Tribune

Berkeley Council to require carbon monoxide detectors
December 08, 1999

By Cecily Burt
STAFF WRITER

BERKELEY — Carbon monoxide detectors will become standard equipment in Berkeley's apartment buildings, but questions remain over how effective the detectors are and at what level the gas should pose a concern.

The council voted 8-0 Tuesday night to begin the process to amend city building codes to require the detectors in existing apartment buildings and in new residential dwellings. Councilmember Betty Olds (Berkeley Hills) was absent.

The council asked City Manager Jim Keene to return quickly with a report to provide the nuts and bolts of new legislation, including how such a law could be phrased to include existing apartments.

Mayor Shirley Dean initiated the building code changes after Seetha Vemireddy, 17, died of carbon monoxide poisoning on Nov. 24 from a blocked heater vent in the apartment she shared with three people at 2020 Bancroft Way.

Her 15-year-old sister also was overcome by the odorless gas, but she recovered. The owner of the apartment building, L.B. Reddy, shared the one-bedroom apartment with the sisters and a 20-year-old female roommate who discovered the girls. Reddy was not home at the time.

In addition to mandatory detectors, the city will step up enforcement of permits for roof repairs and installation, and require building inspectors to ensure the work was performed properly and that vents are not blocked by roofing materials.

An amendment by Councilmember Dona Spring (Central Berkeley) would require landlords to arrange annual inspections by Pacific Gas & Electric Co.

A PG&E hot line was flooded with calls from worried residents after Vemireddy's death, and stores experienced a run on carbon monoxide detectors.

Unfortunately, said Deputy City Manager Weldon Rucker, there is some question about the reliability of the detectors and about safety standards, which differ between various agencies and the Underwriter's Laboratory.

"This is new territory for us," said Arrietta Chakos, the city manager's chief of staff. "The city is actually going above and beyond the letter of the law to determine what is an acceptable level of risk."

The city's health and safety staff should determine the effectiveness of the devices, Dean said, and the city's fire stations should be outfitted with professional-quality devices that could be loaned out to residents.

New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island and three other states have passed carbon monoxide detector legislation.