X - with a bit of thankfulness

[5rings]

X in Lawrence. Safe.

more years ago than most of my readers have years, I learned some material in the USAF that I ended up thankfully never ever needing.

Until tonight.

It saved my tail.

Thank you, General Pattillo.

Comments

[5rings]

Ah. Well, 38 years ago, while at Lowry, I had occasion to be required to read a safety notice on CO2 dangers. Symptoms were presented, etc. It was required by the base commander (probably actually by ATC as a whole) for using CO2 extinguishers. You may not remember. I wouldn't have...

Skip ahead to present day. I participated in a renfaire today, and it was miserably hot in Missouri. To stay cool while in fencing gear, I was packing gel packs in a cooler with dry ice to recharge them quickly. At the end of the day, I dump the dry ice and go to dinner. Only I didn't get rid of all the dry ice. There was rather a lot of it left in the bottom of the ice chest, underneath the regular ice.

I got in the car to drive nearly 200 miles home. Within 4 blocks, my breathing rate had quadrupled, my blood pressure had spiked, I had a headache, and I was getting drowsy.

I had CO2 poisoning. And that training from 38 years ago allowed me to recognize it. I found the problem and fixed it. But I figure that the CO2 levels had, from my symptoms, hit nearly 5%. Which is very very dangerous.

I was very lucky the "little gray cells" pulled up the right solution from my dim and distant past.

[john1082]

1. Good catch
2. You're lucky
3. I remember learning how to put out fires - scary things in a Launch Control Center, a/k/a capsule.

[5rings]

You are completely correct on all 3 counts. Thanks.