Hey y’all, it’s Julie Mattson, and in this week’s episode of Pushing Up Lilies, I’m talking about the hidden winter dangers that can turn deadly, especially carbon monoxide. With recent ice storms here in Texas and heartbreaking accidents involving children, I wanted to share what I’ve seen firsthand as a forensic nurse death investigator. Carbon monoxide is invisible, odorless, and incredibly dangerous, and every year it takes lives simply because people don’t realize the risk. In this episode, I walk you through real cases, explain how carbon monoxide affects the body, and share practical steps you can take to protect yourself and your loved ones during cold weather and power outages. Most of these tragedies are preventable, and if this information helps even one person stay safe, it’s worth sharing. Please pass this episode along to someone you care about, and as always, stay warm, stay aware, and stay safe.
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00:06
Welcome to Pushing Up Lilies. I'm your host, Julie Mattson. Pushing Up Lilies is a weekly true crime podcast with spine-tingling, unusual, and terrifyingly true stories from my perspective as a forensic death investigator and a sexual assault nurse examiner.
00:24
Do I have some stories for you? Are you ready? Hey guys, welcome to another episode of Pushing Up Lily. So happy to be here this week, trying to adjust to retired life. It's been nice. I miss my coworkers, but it has been nice to not have to get up at 5 a.m.
00:48
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Of course, this past week, we have had really bad ice storms in Texas. And so, we haven't gone anywhere. Even the county's been closed. So, my coworkers haven't had to go into work.
01:02
One of the luxuries that they have here is to be able to work from home. And of course, they can kind of be a little pickier about what scenes they go to if the weather's really bad, because they obviously don't want to risk their lives.
01:14
And then I remember back in the day, we used to have crown VIX. Like we didn't even have nice big SUVs like we do now or like they do now. And it was scary. I mean, you would slide around. I mean, they were not reliable.
01:28
They were older. They didn't look beautiful. I mean, there was nothing fun about driving them. They were like old squad cars. They had the old light bars on them. And well, they weren't there anymore, but you could tell that they'd been taken off.
01:42
And they were just terrible. We had to, we had to put like a little, I call it a, a mail delivery light. It was yellow and it was magnetic and it would go from the cigarette lighter outside the window and magnetize to the top of the car when we were going to a scene.
02:01
And it was bad, y'all. It was so bad. Like, I didn't miss those days at all. I know that we have had the strobes and our headlights before, which I way prefer. And then we've had the little red and blue blink lights in the dash, which is nice because especially when you're driving a terrible, ugly car, people don't really think that you have an important job.
02:22
They just think that you're a dumb blonde trying to get through traffic when there's a car accident. So, I ran across that several times. But anyway, the weather here has been absolutely crazy. You go stir crazy after a while.
02:37
We've been in the house probably for about five days. Kids have not had school. Unfortunately, a lot of kids have gone outside to sled. It's not something that we normally do here, and there have been a lot of accidents.
02:52
There are two children now close to where I live who are in critical condition, on life support, fighting for their lives. And then another 16-year-old in a nearby city who lost her life when the sled that she was on, which was being pulled by a Jeep, hit a tree.
03:13
And so, she suffered grave injuries. It's sad because, you know, you go outside and your kids and it's fun. We don't ever have ice. We don't ever have snow and everybody's excited to get out in it. And you don't think about the bad things that can happen all the time.
03:32
And it's one of the drawbacks to this job is I usually do think about all the bad things that can happen. And you don't want the kids not to have a good time, but you also have to just be super conscious of what can go wrong.
03:45
So, I did, like, yesterday we were driving around. We saw some kids kind of sledding down a little like, it wasn't steep, but the side of a bridge. And all the parents were out there and, you know, they couldn't get to cars.
03:58
Cars were nowhere around them. And so, it was safe and it looked like fun. And, but I think the older kids, sometimes we get a little more daring. We want to go a little bit faster. And so, we have had some accidents here because of that.
04:13
And I'm sure in other parts of the world where they have snow and ice all the time, it's not that uncommon. I know I've heard of people falling through the ice and that kind of thing up north, but it doesn't get that cold here.
04:25
We don't ever have thick ice on the lakes that we go out on that we can fall through. I mean, I'm sure it's happened, but it's just not a typical issue here. I am super excited to be able to spend more time on the podcast now that I'm retired.
04:42
I do want to say that I will be at Beyond the Crime this year, and that is going to be a convention. And it is April 11th and 12th. It's going to be in Albuquerque, New Mexico. And I will be on the live podcasting stage.
05:02
And I don't know which day yet. I haven't seen the itinerary, but it would be great to see followers there. We're also going to have a booth to sell merch. So that will be a lot of fun. Also, I found out today that I was accepted as a speaker for the 16th global webinar on forensic science.
05:22
It's going to be held March 18th through 20th, but it's a live online event. My presentation is actually going to be called Forensic Nurse Death Investigator, Bridging Medicine and the Medical Legal Death Investigation System.
05:38
So, I know that my speech or presentation will actually take place on day two. I'm not sure of the time yet. I know with all the different time zones, I'm never good at figuring out what time it is somewhere else.
05:53
I barely know what time it is here. So that's always a struggle for me. Also, the women in podcasting cruise, which is coming up. Just a lot of events coming up. So, it's so exciting. My med spa has really been super, super busy.
06:08
Also working on growing that business. And as you know, finishing school to get my nurse practitioner degree. I am six weeks from finishing my last course. I have a 96 in my last course now. So, I'm proud of that grade.
06:24
But I do have to say, and I think I've said this before, making an A is not as important to me as it used to be. It used to be a big deal because I got reimbursed 100% of my tuition. If I made an A. Well, since I don't have that job, it doesn't really happen anymore.
06:40
And it's harder. I mean, the further along you get, the more difficult it gets. And so you get to the point where you're just like, I'm going to pass. And passing, you can't make anything lower than a C or it's considered an F.
06:54
So, there's no such thing as a D. And after I finish this course in six weeks, I will have clinical, which is 10 weeks long. And so that should be all kinds of fun. We all love working for $0 an hour, which is what I'll be doing for about 10 months.
07:11
But I'll be learning. So that's going to be amazing. Because of our weather here, and I know I've had an episode similar to this, but I wanted to talk a little bit about the silent weather threats that actually kill hundreds of people every year.
07:27
It has no smell. It has no color. It really gives no warning. And that threat is carbon monoxide. And when you breathe it in, your blood cannot deliver oxygen to the rest of your body. People get confused and they fall asleep and then they don't wake up.
07:43
They don't know anything is wrong. We've had entire families locally die from carbon monoxide poisoning. We've had elderly people start their vehicle with their garage door down and die of carbon monoxide poisoning in their home.
08:00
I had a young couple who were in a car in a garage and did not realize that they weren't supposed to put the garage door down. And even when you do, there's still a danger. And we'll talk a little bit about that too.
08:14
But died in the vehicle and mom found them out in the vehicle in the garage. Every year in the U.S., more than 400 people die from unintentional carbon monoxide poisoning. And I like talking about this this time of year because when I lived in Houston during Hurricane Ike, many people pulled their gas grills inside and their charcoal grills inside.
08:38
And they just wanted to stay warm. And so, they just didn't know. And they would light them. They would cook on them. All the doors shut. The carbon monoxide gas would build up in the house. They would start to feel bad.
08:51
They would become disoriented. They got to where they couldn't save each other or help each other. And it was just bad. We had a lot of deaths during Hurricane Ike, and I'm sure hurricanes everywhere for the same reason.
09:05
Most of these are preventable. And today I want to tell you a little bit, some stories kind of behind those numbers. We did have a couple not too long ago that were killed because, not because they moved the gas grill inside, but because there was an issue with the gas line in their house.
09:24
They'd complained of headaches, or at least one of them had, and then they just laid down and went to bed, and both died. So, I want to guide you through a little bit about what carbon monoxide is and then explain how it's produced and then take you into some specific events where families, students, and workers have lost their lives.
09:45
And I want to walk you through some practical steps that you can take this winter to protect yourself. This episode is a little bit longer because I want to make sure that everyone kind of gets this message.
09:57
And I just want to help keep you from becoming a part of a tragic statistic. So, carbon monoxide is called CO, and it is an invisible gas produced when fossil fuels burn incompletely. So, it comes from heaters, furnaces, wood stoves, gas grills, and even your car and generators.
10:19
So, when you breathe it in, the gas binds to the hemoglobin in your blood, and it actually displaces oxygen. So, a little bit of science to it, but your organs starve, your heart struggles, and then your brain fails.
10:34
So even small amounts over time can cause headaches, dizziness, nausea, and confusion. Higher levels can make you unconscious in minutes and lead to death. And these can happen, you know, in smaller spaces.
10:48
So, symptoms often mimic the flu, but without fever. So many deaths occur during sleep. Victims never even realized something was wrong. And so that's kind of why it's called the silent killer. So going to talk about some recent stories where this has come into play.
11:06
January of 2026, two 20-year-old college students were found dead inside their car on a campus in Ohio. This is this month. Luke and Mary had recently celebrated their first anniversary. Authorities are believing that carbon monoxide poisoning from the vehicle's exhaust is likely the cause of death.
11:26
The university canceled events and held a memorial for them. It was a very sudden loss for friends and family. Investigators believe that the car's engine was running or malfunctioned and it actually allowed exhaust to build up inside.
11:41
So, a small leak, and you got to think about this in the exhaust system, can lead to a buildup of carbon monoxide inside a car. So, if you drive a car or SUV with a tailgate, when you open the tailgate, you should also open the vents or windows to make sure air is moving through.
12:03
If the tailgate is open, carbon monoxide from the exhaust can be pulled into the car. So, this couple's story kind of shows how it doesn't discriminate by age. You don't have to be in a garage. You don't have to be in an enclosed spot.
12:16
You can die of carbon monoxide poisoning in your running vehicle outside. It doesn't have to be during a storm. It can happen anywhere. A combustion engine runs in or near an enclosed space. So, during winter storms, there's a lot of power outages and that drives people to find heat.
12:36
Furnaces work less effectively in cold, and people tend to turn to alternative sources for heat, and many lose electricity. So, there is no other source. Propane heaters, charcoal grills, camp stoves, and generators during those times are sometimes used indoors, and there's no proper ventilation.
12:57
So, these sources actually produce carbon monoxide as a byproduct. There was a great storm, I think it was called Maine's Great Ice Storm of 1998, and there were many cases of poisoning after power lines fail and people used unsafe heat sources to stay warm.
13:18
Winter storms always increase the risk because people do this out of necessity. Another example, 2021 here in Texas, we had a big freeze. Hospitals reported more carbon monoxide poisoning cases than they see in a typical year in one single day because people were using grills, stoves, and heaters improperly.
13:41
It tells us the same thing every time. This stuff builds up quickly, where fuel burns without airflow. March of last year, two teenagers were found dead from suspected carbon monoxide poisoning in Illinois.
13:56
They were discovered inside a vehicle. Officials said the initial autopsy results suggested accidental carbon monoxide poisoning. They don't really know why the teenagers were in the car with the engine running, but exposure to the carbon monoxide was fatal.
14:15
And it just shows you how vulnerable enclosed spaces can become with even low unseen levels of exhaust. We have had carbon monoxide deaths before, or even people who try to asphyxiate them in a closed vehicle with chemicals inside.
14:35
And when that door opens, you just get this big whiff. I did have a carbon monoxide death in a garage one time. And I can remember when I showed up on scene. Oh my gosh, y'all. We opened the door to get the body out and I got lightheaded.
14:51
I mean, it hit me so hard because there was still a buildup of gas in the vehicle. So, when I got there and opened the door, I mean, it was overwhelming. I literally got sick. I almost went to the ER because I knew that I probably had carbon monoxide poisoning.
15:09
It sends thousands of people to emergency rooms every year. And in some regions, reports show as many as 26 exposures from a single storm related to improper indoor grill use. And this is kind of a warning to everybody when the weather is bad.
15:29
It's still winter. We're just starting to experience winter in Texas. And even back in North Carolina in 2002, they had a lot of power outages that led to up to 200 carbon monoxide cases after people in that town used grills and propane heaters to stay warm.
15:51
I don't know if you remember, back in Vallejo, California. Gosh, I can't even remember what year it was, but there were two market workers who died from carbon monoxide exposure inside the workplace. There was a lawsuit that claims that nausea and dizziness was ignored before these two men passed away.
16:15
It doesn't always strike in dramatic outdoor scenes. It builds up indoors where ventilation is poor. Sometimes the symptoms may seem mild, and they're dismissed until it's too late. Now, not all carbon monoxide stories end in death.
16:36
There's actually a family in Ohio that survived an episode of carbon monoxide poisoning, but it nearly took their lives. Oxygen levels in their home plunged dangerous lows. They recognized symptoms during the night, escaped with their young child, and called for help.
16:56
Firefighters later told them that they were extremely lucky to have identified the issue. Now, their experience shows how quick thinking and awareness of symptoms can save lives. Headache, nausea, weakness, these are all warning signs that should never be ignored.
17:16
I actually don't. We have a new home, and it does not have guests. And I'm so thankful for that because I'm scared of it. I've been to so many scenes and I've seen so many bad things. And I know you can't smell it and you obviously can't see it.
17:36
It's scary. It's just scary to me. There are more stories out of Detroit. Last year, two children in a homeless family died inside a van during cold weather. It was carbon monoxide poisoning, not cold exposure.
17:55
Mother sought housing assistance weeks earlier, but follow-up never happened. And so she was trying to keep her children safe. This tragedy actually sparked a policy response from city officials. They now have a 24-hour housing hotline and health checks for families with loss of shelter.
18:14
It exposes a lot of gaps in the system that contribute to carbon monoxide deaths and lack of housing, delayed services, and exposure in enclosed spaces with running engines can create these deadly conditions.
18:28
Across the world, carbon monoxide has caused mass casualties. In the Balvano train disaster of 1944, and this goes way back in Italy, 517 people, that's a lot of people, died of carbon monoxide poisoning when a coal-powered train stalled inside a tunnel.
18:51
Could you imagine that? No one got out. Everyone stayed in the train, powered by coal, in a tunnel. And, you know, I can only imagine how small those tunnels are. We've seen them on TV. I can picture it in my head.
19:07
But these historical examples show how lethal carbon monoxide has been long before modern appliances existed. Every story you've heard today kind of highlights the preventable risk factors. And here's what you need to know.
19:23
Definitely install carbon monoxide alarms, especially in sleeping areas and on every level of your home. If you have a two-story home, there needs to be one on the first floor, one on the second floor.
19:38
Test them monthly and make sure you change the batteries regularly. Never burn fossil fuels indoors. Don't use charcoal grills. Don't use camp stoves, portable heaters, or anything like that in enclosed spaces.
19:54
I'm not just talking about in your home. I'm talking about also in your garage. Even with the door up, you can have enough gas buildup to make you extremely sick or even kill you. Never run a vehicle inside a garage again, even when the door is open.
20:12
If you have the tailgate down, just think that that exhaust that's trying to get out of the back of your pickup truck doesn't have as much space to go. And so, some of it is going to come back into the truck.
20:30
And a lot of these deaths, again, are suicides. You know, we've gone on a lot of carbon monoxide deaths where this is done on purpose, which I can't imagine, but I think a lot of people feel like it's painless, relatively quick, and you just go to sleep, you don't suffer, and there's no blood and all the things.
20:49
And so, I think that's kind of one reason why a lot of people choose this for suicides. But many times, it's accidental. I know that when we go on scenes where, you know, it could be one way or the other, or part of our job as an investigator is to ask questions.
21:08
One thing we have to ask family is, does this person who died have a history of suicide attempts? Have they ever talked about hurting themselves? Have there been any previous incidents? Do they have a therapist?
21:22
Are they on meds for depression? Have there been any previous attempts? Just there's so many questions. And we're not necessarily implying that that's what happened, but we do have to rule it out because it does happen.
21:36
It does happen more than you know. If you use a generator during a power outage, always place it at least 20 feet from your house and place it away from windows and doors. And keep the vents and the flumes and chimneys clear of snow and ice, so that the combustion gas can escape.
21:59
I know I used to love having a wood-burning fireplace when I was a kid. I mean, they're messy, but they are so nice and they just smell amazing and are so cozy. Ours now is electric and I love it because there's a switch and you can turn the little lava stones blue and purple and red and pink and you can make the flame a different color and it puts out heat and it's amazing.
22:23
I mean, it's definitely fake and it's electric, not gas, but it's clean. You know, it's totally enclosed. You don't ever have to do anything to it, but flip a switch on, and flip a switch off. So, I do like that part about it, but I have to admit, I miss the smell and just the coziness of a good wood-burning fireplace.
22:45
But keeping those flames open and keeping them clean, that's important. Recognize the symptoms, headache, dizziness, nausea, confusion, chest pain, shortness of breath. If a lot of people in the same location start experiencing symptoms simultaneously, get fresh air and get help.
23:07
You can still die, again, even if your car is parked outside an open area. So just remember that exhaust flows back into the car. Wind direction, nearby buildings, snowbanks, or other vehicles can push fumes towards doors and vents.
23:26
A block tailpipe, we talked about this already, traps exhaust. Snow, ice, mud, or leaves over the exhaust in a vehicle can force carbon monoxide under the vehicle and into the cabin. Ventilation systems pull fumes inside and cars draw outside air through the HVAC system even when they're parked.
23:51
Cold engines produce higher carbon monoxide levels. So, in cold weather, when you start your car, the carbon monoxide levels are going to be higher. So, idling during warm-up releases concentrated exhaust and people remain inside too long sitting and waiting or sleeping.
24:14
And that just gives the gas time to accumulate. Victims don't escape because it has no smell. It has no color. Early symptoms are minor, you know, headache, dizziness, nausea, confusion. Your mental clarity drops fast.
24:33
Your reaction time slows down. Unconsciousness follows, and then death occurs quietly. Cars warming up during winter storms, vehicles stuck in snow with engines running, sitting in a parked car at outdoor events, idling near walls, homes, or other vehicles.
24:55
These are all common real situations that can cause real problems. These stories are actually warnings and they are lessons. So, preparedness and awareness saves lives. I encourage you to share this episode with your friends and your family and your coworkers and stay informed and stay prepared and stay super safe this winter.
25:24
I know a lot of people think if I'm sitting in my car in a parking lot, it's fine. But if there are snow and mud on your tailpipe and your exhaust cannot go out your tailpipe, it's going to come back into your vehicle.
25:41
And if you start feeling sick, heed warning to that and don't ignore it because it's really dangerous. And this time of year, we just see it happen too much. It's completely preventable. And if I can save one person, I feel like it's worth it.
26:00
So, I highly encourage you to share this episode and just make everybody aware. I think that, you know, with storms and winter storm mornings, I hope we're not, I hope we're not doing this again in Texas.
26:13
I remember, I think it was 2021 or 22. I don't remember when we had such a bad storm. So, we tend to get hit with ice like every year into January, beginning of February, it seems, which is weird for Texas.
26:29
But it has become the norm as of late. So, we're just not used to this. We don't know how to drive in it. My husband gets aggravated when he gets behind a slow driver because he's like, God, you know, especially if they're driving a big four-wheel drive truck.
26:44
He's like, why are they going nine miles an hour? Like, this guy should be embarrassed. So, it's kind of funny because he gets really antsy. And so, we went out on our side by side earlier to get the mail, and it was cold, but it felt good.
26:58
Like today, I think it was like, I don't know, 37, but it wasn't cold, cold. I mean, out of the sweatsuit, I didn't even have to wear a jacket, but it was really just nice to get out of the house and finally find some restaurants that were open.
27:14
It's really kind of, it's boring. I don't know how y'all do it. When you live in an area where this is the weather all the time, I could definitely see how people suffer from depression. And like my husband said, you know, if you live up north and you're a farmer, you can't work during the winter months and you live alone.
27:35
You have nobody to talk to. The only place to talk to people where everybody's at is at the bar. And then, you know, drinks are $3 or whatever. So, they're super cheap and everybody just drinks and drinks and drinks.
27:46
And it's just, there's a lot of accidents this time of year. Not so much carbon monoxide poisonings in those cases, but just the weather. I mean, it's just depressing. I don't know how people do it. I can't do it.
27:58
Even the heat here drives me crazy during the summer. So anyway, just super exciting things going on, y'all. And if you love true crime, please try to come to one of these events. I think it would be so much fun.
28:13
I would love to mingle with you. Still working on my book and my education program. Again, I hear from nurses all the time and other people who are interested in forensics reaching out to me wanting to know where they can get the education.
28:29
And so, I'm working on that for you. But these seminars that I'm going to be speaking at are good, fairly inexpensive ways for you to get some exposure and hear these presentations and hear these professionals talk about their experiences to help you see if it's something that you might really want to do.
28:49
Anyway, it's going to be so much fun. I hope that everyone has a warm rest of your week. And I really hope that you stay safe and just praying for these families who are suffering now with loss from these sledding accidents here in Texas for healing for these kids who were injured and remain on life support.
29:17
It's so heavy. And I know in the sledding accident, you know, I was talking with my neighbor earlier about how it just weighs heavy on your heart, like the kid who was driving the Jeep that was pulling this little girl.
29:27
I mean, they were all just trying to have a good time and trying to have fun and didn't really consider worst case scenario. And when you haven't had life experiences, sometimes you just don't. And you don't always talk to your parents about things you're going to do and fun ideas you have, you know, random things past them.
29:48
Had they done that, you know, I'm sure their parents would have been like, eh, that's not a great idea. But then, you know, if you don't drive fast, you know, you just never know. But your speed going forward in a Jeep pulling doesn't necessarily show how fast those sleds can skid out sideways and the speed that they can build up, you know, on the ice.
30:11
So, there's no traction at all. And even flipping them over, you know, it's muddy and it's just so, so sad. But anyway, y'all, stay warm and stay safe. Go on my murder merch store. There's some new items that will be on there soon, pushinguplilies.com.
30:31
Be sure and share with your friends and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform. Until next week, see y'all soon. Bye, y'all. Thank you so much for joining me today on Pushing Up Lilies. If you like this podcast and would like to share with others, please do me a quick favor and leave a review on Apple Podcast.
30:51
This helps to make the podcast more visible to the public. Thanks again for spending your time with me and be sure to visit me at pushinguplilies.com for merchandise and past episodes.