A circus family was hospitalized with carbon monoxide poisoning after they were found unconscious in their recreational vehicle in Northwest Washington Monday.
A spokesman for the visiting Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus said a woman from a neighboring motor home found the family of four unconscious and the mother lying on the floor shortly before 8 a.m.
Circus workers pulled the family out of the vehicle, parked in a lot at Second and H streets. Emergency crews found the father, a 13-year-old boy and a 6-year-old girl lethargic and responsive, but the mother remained unconscious, said D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services spokesman Alan Etter.
The family was taken to area hospitals. The mother was placed in a pressurized chamber to remove the poison from her system, Etter said. She was in serious condition.
Etter said the family may have been using a propane stove for heat.
The father is a concession worker and the family traveled with him, said circus spokesman Enrico Dinges. The circus will be performing Thursday through Sunday at the Verizon Center.
