Carbon Monoxide death

I doubt there's anyone who hasn't heard the term "Station wagon effect" which comes from the days when station wagons had a 3rd seat facing backwards. Parents would often put there kids there and leave the back window open with tragic effects. Unfortunately too many people don't recognize that the same thing happens with boats. They assume that all the fresh air moving past them will push the exhaust away from the boat, but it actually has the opposite effect. The boat forms a vacuum behind it that can actually suck the fumes toward and into the cockpit. Hopefully this mother reposts this story every spring as people start launching. So tragic.

Fortunately the water toys aren't so much the problem if they're kept a proper distance from the boat as the fumes dissipate and drop. It's when they hang close to the stern of an idling boat or get the station wagon effect while in the boat slow cruising that it gets them.

Very sad.

Too few details including the type of boat and seating arrangements. The fact that he was laying down and rolled off into the water indicates he may have been in the back of boat, maybe even on a swim platform.

not sure if idling in a no wake zone will cause enough of station wagon effect for CO to accumulate back there

how can people not be aware of the risks when boats come with warning levels about co and the risks.

It was a ski boat. "He was at the back of our Malibu Skier most of the day". I'm sure nobody would allow their child to ride the swim platform. Undoubtedly an aft sun pad or backseat, and yes idling through a no wake zone could cause enough Co to accumulate unless you think the parents had their kids suck on the exhaust pipe.

It's amazing what people are unaware of despite warnings. (Ever think about the roll-over warning on the sun visor in your truck or SUV?)Everybody assumes it'll never happen to them or they'll recognize the dangers in time. Cemeteries are filled with such people.

why would I think the parents would have their kids suck on the exhaust. WTH is wrong with you.
The Malibu skier model I see is an older boat with a beach seat along the transom and a narrow surface on top of the transom. Assuming that s kind of boat it was the only wait the kid could have rolled in the water is if he had been on that short transom deck. Not the right place to be.

education is key. I wonder if CO poisoning is even in addressed in state boating certificates... somehow I doubt it.

That's why I prefer the in person basic boating courses. There's a ton of stuff that gets covered in the general banter with the instructors.

(Comments like "not sure if idling in a no wake zone will cause enough of station wagon effect for CO to accumulate back there" where the proof is in the dead child earn sarcasm. Sorry if you don't like my sense of humor.)

Last week I was on a 52' Tira it was a cool night and when I arrived in the morning in Port Colborne to go down the canal a 13 mile run down to lock seven we were following a full size ship doing about six knots .
As it was a cold night the Captain had all the curtains up. About and half hour in to our run sitting back and having a coffee we heard a beeping noise. We checked all instruments every thing ok but still beeping. I went down below and in forward
stateroom the Carbon Monoxide detector was going off.
We opened up all the curtains and air was cleared up in a few minutes.
As NYCAP says station wagon effect

Station wagon effect is a problem with curtains and even in some cockpit FB boats. I m just having a hard time seeing it on a ski boat with very low freeboard

CO alarms are very rare on diesel boats but this shows the need for CO detector. Probably should be added to the radar arch on boats will full enclosure

Low freeboard is meaningless. Co fumes are heavier than air. They go to the lowest point. If the child's face is below the gunwale it wouldn't matter if the freeboard was 3". And a CO detector added to the radar arch will be good at warning people as they come aboard to retrieve the bodies. Even in most boat cabins the factory installed ones are in the wrong place. Again CO gas sinks. The detectors should be as low as possible. Be warned when the gas is at your knees, not your nose.

Roger, All too common. that's why nobody should be allowed to stay below underway unless a forward hatch is open. We almost had a huge disaster here not long ago: https://dailyvoice.com/new-york/nas...isoning-on-boat-at-long-island-marina/790033/

For the station wagon effect to take place and for CO to be sucked in forward you need an area of low pressure. Not going to happen with 2’ of freeboard, no cabin and no enclosure. There will be CO trapped down low along the transom but not at the top. Basic physics.

Not to nitpick but carbon monoxide is a bit lighter than air. Air is 1.27 kg/m3 whereas CO is 1.14 kg/m3. In reality, the difference is small enough that CO will generally mix well with air. It generally will not quickly float up. This heavier than air misconception has been around for some time and causes significant problems with CO safety training. People think that putting a CO detector in the basement would be best. In fact, that's the worst place unless the source is there. Several CO detectors spread out vertically are best.

I have carbon monoxide detectors on both floor of my house
The Tira I was on was diesel

Diesel produces less CO, but not no CO. We installed CO detectors in all the staterooms on Valhalla.

Thank you professor. I'll contact that woman right away and let her know her son isn't really dead.