Crime & Safety
Family Flees Smoky Cellar
A clogged vent blew back smoke into a Rockland Street house on Monday.
A mom and her two children got out of their Rockland Street home after they noticed smoke in the basement at 5 p.m. Monday.
Firefighters detected moderate levels of carbon monoxide inside 16 Rockland St., said Swampscott fire Capt. Remo Zimbaldi.
The town's EMS service, Action Ambulance, recommended that the mom take her children to the hospital to have them tested for exposure to carbon monoxide, he said.
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Jennifer Galat said everyone got out of the house fine but she was going to the hospital, as advised.
The smoke was due to a blowback, Capt. Zimbaldi said. A vent to the home's oil burning furnace was clogged and smoke backed into the basement.
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Firefighters opened doors to the house and used large fans — called smoke ejectors — to clear out the smoke.
They were finishing up with their work about 5:50 p.m.
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