‘Delayed ignition and explosion’ in boiler led to fatal carbon monoxide incident in Regina

The Regina fire department says the investigation into a fatal carbon monoxide case has concluded, with the manufacturer of the faulty boiler that caused the leak issuing a safety notice.

On Dec. 19, carbon monoxide leaked into several suites of an apartment building on the 1800 block of Albert Street, leading to the death of 11-year-old Henry Losco. His father, Sergio Losco, was hospitalized due to exposure to the deadly gas, but recovered after undergoing treatment in Regina and Edmonton.

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“He was happy and he was healthy and he still had so much life to live,” Marina Hills, Henry’s mother, said in a previous interview with 980 CJME.

“All those things that you look forward to, teaching them how to drive a car and graduation and their first girlfriend and their first dance and… it’s gone. It’s all over now.

A carbon monoxide leak on Dec. 19 at the Metro 1827 building on Albert Street claimed the life of 11-year-old Henry Lesco. The leak has since been attributed to a faulty boiler in the building. (Nicole Garn/980 CJME)

The family was new to Regina, having moved to the city from Newfoundland about two weeks before Henry’s death. Hills said when she arrived home from her new job that evening, she found Sergio on the kitchen floor, struggling to breathe, while her son was unresponsive on his bed.

Hills said she doesn’t remember events clearly after that point, but she was able to get Henry into a hallway where a neighbour performed CPR while she went back into the suite and dragged Sergio into the hallway.

“What happened to me that night has truly and deeply affected me in a way that I don’t have words to describe,” she said.

In January, the Regina Fire Department said it determined the leak was unintentional. The fire department said investigators traced the issue to a faulty boiler, which sent carbon monoxide into several suites after an internal failure. The boiler was sent away for further examination.

On Wednesday, the fire department said its investigation confirmed the faulty boiler was responsible for the release of carbon monoxide.

“The investigation was completed in coordination with technical experts from the Technical Safety Authority of Saskatchewan,” Regina fire chief Layne Jackson said in a statement.

“The investigation findings determined that the incident was caused by a malfunction of a commercial boiler, which experienced a delayed ignition and explosion, resulting in the release of carbon monoxide.”

The boiler was identified as an NTI FTG 2000 model, the fire department said, and the manufacturer has since issued a safety notice for that specific model.

“Under certain installation conditions, delayed ignition may occur in the Boilers, which could contribute to damage to exhaust venting components and the potential release of combustion products, including carbon monoxide,” the notice read.

The safety notice said NTI is offering free upgrade kits designed to reduce the likelihood and severity of incidents of delayed ignition, and asked users to stop using their boilers until the upgrades have been completed. Sellers were asked to “segregate and not sell, distribute or install any remaining inventory” until after the upgrades have been completed.

Marina Hills and Sergio Losco say they hope to honour the memory of their son Henry by raising awareness of carbon monoxide (Geoff Smith/980 CJME)

Hills said she and Sergio spoke to the media in an effort to help raise awareness about the risks of carbon monoxide.

“We want to share this story so no other family goes through this,” she said. “Carbon monoxide is silent, it’s deadly, and we implore everyone to check your alarms regularly, to test them and to replace the batteries.”

Jackson said firefighters “saved a lot of lives that evening” by quickly identifying the situation as a carbon monoxide issue and moving residents outside quickly.

“It’s the great work of emergency crews out there (that) limited this incident from becoming worse,” he said.