Grandmother, 4 grandkids hospitalized after gas leak

WHITE LAKE, NC (WWAY) — A 67-year-old woman and her four grandchildren under the age of 12 are recovering from apparent carbon monoxide poisoning.

White Lake Police said they went to a home on Ryan Road last night after 10:15 p.m. to check on the persons inside when first responders smelled gas. An officer was able to open a window and get a semi-conscious girl to wake up and open the locked door. First responders pulled out a woman, 67, and four children ages three to 12. Officials said after dinner the woman and children began to feel sick.

All five were taken to Cape Fear Valley Hospital in Elizabethtown before being transferred to Duke University Hospital. Police said they are doing well. Officials said they found a gas stove burner turned on, but they did not know if it was turned on or left on by accident.

Police urge residents to have working carbon monoxide detectors in their homes to help prevent incidents like this one.