More than half a dozen residents at an apartment building were sent to the emergency room after being exposed to carbon monoxide on Sunday.
Manchester, N.H. firefighters responded to the building, where they found dangerously high levels of carbon monoxide. All of the residents were evacuated and sent to a nearby hospital for treatment while the apartment building was ventilated. Upon inspection firefighters found that there were no carbon monoxide detectors in the apartment, a safety violation on behalf of the landlord.
While this case occurred in New Hampshire, it is a clear example of negligence on the part of the landlord as he violated safety codes established in his state. The states of both New Hampshire and Massachusetts, as of January 2010, require the installation of properly working carbon monoxide detectors.
New Hampshire laws § 150:10-a:
Requires the installation of carbon monoxide detectors in rental units and in single and multi-family dwellings built or substantially rehabilitated after January 1, 2010.
Mass. Gen. Laws Ann. ch. 148, § 26f1/2:
Requires that every dwelling, building or structure occupied in whole or in part for residential purposes that contains fossil-fuel burning equipment or incorporates enclosed parking within its structure shall be equipped by the owner with working, approved carbon monoxide alarms.
Building codes are rules for keeping buildings and other structures minimally safe. In Massachusetts, the Board of Building Regulations and Standards has adopted standards of building codes to ensure that buildings are safe and free of hazards to the public. These provisions include fire codes, structural codes, and sanitary codes.
There is an obvious need for building codes to be enforced in the state of Massachusetts, and when people are injured because a building code is not observed it becomes the responsibility of the building’s owner to assume liability for those injuries. In Massachusetts, a violation of the building code will be evidence of a property owner’s negligence as long as the violation contributed in some way to causing the injury. This case in New Hampshire is a clear example of property owner’s negligence and violation of New Hampshire state laws.
There are a number of other types of building code violations including:
-Sprinkler systems and fire escape -Elevators -Structural defects -Emergency lighting systems -Exit sights -Exterior locks -Gas fitting -Electrical wiring
At the law offices of Altman & Altman, our Boston Premises Liability Attorneys have nearly 50 years of experience handling all types of Personal Injury cases including Premises Liability and Property Negligence cases. If you or a loved one was the victim of another’s negligence because their property was not up to code or properly cared for, call our office and speak to one of our lawyers to schedule a free initial consultation. Upon evaluation of your case, we will decide whether you qualify for filing a premises liability claim, and whether you may be eligible for receiving compensation for your injuries. Our phones are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and our attorneys are available around the clock to answer any questions you have about your case.