**TRUE STORY—TRAVELERS MUST READ**

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*Please don’t trust your life to the owners of vacation rentals, hotels, motels or resorts! The following is a must read for anyone thinking about traveling anywhere, anytime.

My true story will send shivers down your spine and make you think seriously about protecting yourself and your loved ones with the Protector Max™ carbon monoxide detector standing guard on your next vacation.

Picture this: our 25th wedding anniversary, a dream getaway to a luxurious golf resort. A celebration of love and milestones.

We were just kids when we got married so many years ago!

Little did we know, this trip would become a terrifying brush with death—a tale that must be shared.

You see, the first half of the year was an absolute whirlwind, consumed by the planning of our oldest daughter's wedding. A wonderful, beautiful event for sure.

But just when I thought I couldn’t catch my breath, my remarkable husband pulled off the most delightful surprise: a weeklong anniversary vacation at a 5-star golf resort that we would go on right after the wedding; just the two of us!

I was imagining warm ocean breezes, relaxing by the pool and having all of the Mango-Tangos I could drink! It would be perfect … or so I thought.

If you're anything like me, you probably have a checklist of items to pack whenever you go on vacation: phone charger, prescriptions, toiletries, credit cards, extra cash, laptop, and perhaps even your passport for international travels.

(NOTE: I did not have a Protector Max™ carbon monoxide detector!)

Our first days were a blissful retreat—poolside relaxation, gourmet cuisine, and the warm embrace of paradise. It was the pinnacle of our silver anniversary celebration. 

The staff, chefs and cabana crew were all charming. We had six amazing days. There was nothing to complain about and by the end of our week we vowed to come back to this heavenly retreat someday soon. I couldn’t have been happier!

But little did we know, our idyllic bubble was about to burst.

As our last night unfolded, something went terribly wrong. It was exactly 1:31am when I awoke with a pounding headache, drenched in sweat, and nauseous.

Alarmed, I discovered my husband also awake and experiencing similar symptoms—clammy skin, ringing ears, and dizziness. Panic ensued, as we struggled to make sense of our condition. 

Does Carbon Monoxide Poison Kill Vacationers in the United States?

YES! Most cases go unreported, but one study showed:

900+ Guests Poisoned

22 Deaths 

115 Incidents

In a moment of clarity, my husband uttered the chilling words: “I think it’s carbon monoxide poisoning … we need some fresh air!”

It seemed improbable, even impossible, but if that were true our lives were now at stake.

(We were both clueless about CO poisoning, like absolutely clueless. But coincidentally, just a couple of weeks before our trip, the news was going nuts about this horrifying incident where a bunch of people died from carbon monoxide poisoning at a fancy Caribbean resort.)

My husband urgently opened the balcony door and walked out. I could hear him taking deep breaths of air for a minute or two.

Drowsy and feeling worse as time passed, I wasn’t exactly sure what the heck this could be. Was it possible that our room, our sanctuary for the past week, had turned into a deadly trap?

I was still sitting up in bed when my husband came back into the room and began to frantically search up “symptoms” of carbon monoxide poisoning on his phone. As he read from the Center for Disease Control (CDC’s) website out loud, he confirmed our worst fears:

“The most common symptoms of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning are headache, dizziness, weakness, upset stomach, vomiting, chest pain, and confusion…”

He continued reading, his breathing became a little more labored:

“Carbon monoxide symptoms are often described as ‘flu-like.’ If you breathe in a lot of carbon monoxide it can make you pass out or KILL YOU…”

Then mid-sentence and to my shock and horror, he collapsed right in front of me! I’m not kidding … he landed face-first onto the bed.

At that point time slowed to a crawl … like they do in the movies when they use slow-motion for dramatic effect, only this was no movie!

I freaked out. I got out of bed to help him, yelling his name, but he was completely unresponsive. I was trained in the medical field and thought I was going to have to do CPR to save his life. 

I knew there was no way I could help him on the bed, so I pushed his lifeless body onto the floor where I could better manage CPR.

But as I felt more and more disoriented, it hit me like a ton of bricks—I just desperately needed outside help, like, RIGHT NOW! So, I stumbled back to my side of the bed where the phone was, and I pressed the front desk button like there was no tomorrow.

(Remember: this was in the early hours of the morning.)

At first no one was answering! It seemed like it was just ringing, ringing!

Finally, when I heard a voice, I yelled:

“My husband passed out … help!!!”

And that’s the last thing I remember.

The next thing I knew, my husband was yelling at me to crawl outside.

He miraculously came to just in time to catch my final scream on the phone, right before witnessing me pass out. He told me that as I collapsed, he saw my face smack right into the nightstand, which, by the way, ended up causing me some serious nerve damage!

My husband was too weak to help me, but he crawled next to me as we worked our way out of the room and outside onto the balcony.

There, in the darkness of early morning, we collapsed on our backs and just laid there in complete disbelief. 

In that terrifying moment, my husband rolled toward me and looked into my eyes … he uttered those three precious words “I love you” … fully aware that this could potentially be our final farewell.

It seemed like an eternity just lying there, but we finally heard the voices of the resort staff. They somehow broke through the door and were shocked to see us incapacitated on the balcony. 

Doctor Says: Always Bring Your Own Carbon Monoxide Monitor

"I bring my own carbon monoxide monitor with me everywhere I stay," (Dr. Andrew Moffat, a hyperbaric specialist at Intermountain Healthcare in Salt Lake City, Utah) 

Victims Names Revealed at Boulder Hotel - Carbon Monoxide 

"The Clarks claim a host of physical and mental impairments from their alleged carbon monoxide exposure, to include permanent brain injuries — thus, the issues at stake have high importance," (U.S. Magistrate Judge S. Kato Crews)

I still can’t believe it, but in our awful state lying there they initially (and critically) asked if we had taken drugs or something nefarious that day … and of course we hadn’t!

My husband told them that he thought it was carbon monoxide poisoning. As we laid there, the one medically trained resort staff member took our pulse oximetry “pulse ox” to check the oxygen level in our blood. 

Assume Safety Measures Are Not In Place

"There is no way to be able to look that up (if a hotel or short-term rental has CO alarms) and say let's make sure there is a requirement for CO detectors in that area…Assume the appropriate safety measures are not in place, because there is no way to know for sure." (Kris Hauschildt, Founder the Jenkins Foundation)

Hotel Carbon Monoxide Gas Leak Sends 15 People to the Hospital

“SAFD transported 15 people to local hospital as priority 2, meaning the patients are stable but condition could worsen without treatment. The hotel was evacuated as a precaution.”

I knew mine was low because I felt like I might pass out again … but when they said it was 62%, I could barely believe what I heard! 95% or higher is normal … below 70% is life-threatening … my husband and I were both in our 60s!

No oxygen = death!

At this point the seriousness of our dilemma was apparent to the resort staff. They said they needed to get us to the hospital and planned to call for an ambulance.

The hospital was nearly 40 minutes away and the ambulance would be coming from the hospital. That meant it would take nearly an hour and a half for us to get to the hospital! No way!

With as much strength as my husband could muster, he demanded that they load us into the resort shuttle and rush us to the hospital themselves. Thankfully they agreed. They also had one tank of oxygen that both my husband and I could share.

They used resort wheelchairs to get us down to the shuttle.

The drive to the hospital felt like the longest drive of my life. I was in and out of awareness the whole ride as my husband and I shared the one tank of oxygen.

When we finally got to the hospital the doctor put us each on our own oxygen.

(The standard treatment for carbon monoxide poisoning—if it doesn’t kill you—is to immediately breath pure oxygen to reoxygenate your organs and tissues.)

He said we were “lucky” to be alive.

Several hours later, we began to experience a slight improvement in our condition. I use the term "slight" because while we were able to stand and walk, we still felt incredibly sick, and a heavy cloud of “brain-fog” had come over us. 

My husband's heart was also causing him distress, with palpitations and occasional skipped beats. Additionally, the injuries on my face were causing excruciating pain.

The doctor gave me some pain meds, but informed us that there wasn't much else he could do to help.

He advised us to return to the resort to gather our stuff so we could catch our flight. At this point, our main focus was getting home.

When we got back to the resort my husband demanded that they put us in a new room where we could rest for a few more hours before we had to get to the airport … which they did.

Amazingly after a little more rest we were able to get to the airport.

The whole flight back I couldn’t help but wonder …

“Why did this happen to us?”

“Could we have prevented it?"

“Can we help other travelers from a similar, or worse fate?”

When we got home, we immediately went to our primary care provider who put us on additional courses of pure oxygen. Our doctor stressed how fortunate our outcome had been. 

He said that had the carbon monoxide poisoning happened here at home, he would have put us into a hyperbaric-oxygen chamber immediately to counter the effects. We did not have that luxury at the hospital near our resort.

I can't even put into words how grateful I am to be alive. Every moment I get to hold my kids, spend time with them, and continue to live my life just feels like an incredible blessing.

But in the days, weeks, and months since that dreadful experience, I’ve continued to deal with persistent mental haziness. The nerve damage in my face continues to cause unrelenting pain, while my husband's irregular heart arrhythmia persists.

Adding to our burden, I find myself grappling with sleeplessness on many nights, gaining a newfound understanding of what it truly means to have PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). It's been an arduous journey, to say the least.

Most of life unfolds before our eyes with little true warning of what will occur. Oh, we have dreams, we make decisions and we think we know what’s ahead … but sometimes life throws us curve-balls.

Almost dying from carbon monoxide poisoning was my life’s biggest curve-ball—but it could have been prevented.

Like so many vacation rentals, hotels, motels and resorts in the United States, Canada and around the world—we found out that our vacation destination obviously DID NOT HAVE CARBON MONOXIDE DETECTORS!

It’s shocking, but the requirements can vary from state to state, country to country. And in many cases, there are no regulations at all.

In our case, we discovered that when we used the in-room washer and dryer at the end of our last day, the dryer was faulty and (obviously without our knowledge) leaked excessive amounts of odorless, death-causing carbon monoxide into our room.

The broken dryer almost led to our deaths—but there are a ton of other dangerous scenarios where carbon monoxide is leaked and inhaled by unassuming vacationers every year.

YES! And that’s why I offer the Protector Max™ carbon monoxide detector to all my friends. Don’t gamble with your life like we did. And it’s so SIMPLE!

They say an ounce of prevention is worth its weight in gold, and that is so true with the Protector Max™. It gives you the peace of mind you need to travel freely knowing your covered everywhere you go.

When it comes to carbon monoxide detectors, it's vital to understand that they are not all created equal. Don't be fooled by appearances alone—many may look similar, but the quality and effectiveness can vary greatly.

The question you must ask yourself is this: 

Your safety and well-being deserve the best protection available. Invest in a reliable carbon monoxide detector that meets rigorous safety standards.

The Protector Max™ carbon monoxide detector has these and other important features you need to consider:

• Long-lasting battery life…to save you!

• Clear and loud alarm signals…to save you!

• Accurate sensing capabilities…to save you!

Remember, I know firsthand that carbon monoxide is a silent killer, invisible and odorless. Without a trustworthy detector, you may not even realize the danger until it's too late like us. So, don't compromise on something as critical as your life and the lives of your loved ones.

Choose a carbon monoxide detector that you can truly rely on—the Protector Max™ carbon monoxide detector will give you peace of mind and safeguard your travels against this deadly threat.

Important Note: Carbon monoxide can be a serious hazard. It sends more than 100,000 people a year to the hospital and kills hundreds. Using a reliable CO detector while you travel is one of the best ways to give you and your family the warning needed to help prevent CO poisoning on vacation. Although the CO detector sold here has been designed to detect and warn when CO is present, it is the responsibility of the purchaser(s) (1) not to solely rely on the device to warn them; (2) to use the device in a prudent manner; (3) be aware of potentially hazardous conditions around them and; (4) evacuate areas of concern. Protector Max™, its subsidiaries and owners are not responsible for illness or death caused by carbon monoxide exposure.

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