CO alarm going off? Open doors and windows, turn off fuel-burning appliances, get everyone out and call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999. [VERIFY: Northern Ireland number (#21)] See what to do
Carbon monoxide takes lives
These are real people who have been affected by carbon monoxide. Their stories show why every home needs a CO alarm.
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Photo of Elliot Bourne, supplied by his family with permission. Portrait, 1200 × 1500px, WebP.
Elliot Bourne was a fit, healthy young man who died from carbon monoxide poisoning caused by a blocked chimney in his accommodation. A carbon monoxide alarm could have saved his life. His family and friends are keeping his memory alive by spreading awareness of this silent killer.
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Stacey Rodgers lost her son Dominic to CO poisoning
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Photo of Dominic Rodgers, with his family's permission. Portrait, 1200 × 1500px, WebP.
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Photo of Stacey Rodgers, with her permission. Portrait, 1200 × 1500px, WebP.
On a night like many others, Stacey kissed her 10-year-old son Dominic goodnight, told him she loved him and went to bed. The next morning, she went into his bedroom and found him face down and cold. Shaking him, Stacey saw Dominic had been sick and panicked. She called an ambulance and after what felt like ages, they arrived.
The paramedics rushed upstairs, then started opening the windows and doors and told Stacey to leave the house. Not knowing why, Stacey was still convinced her son had frozen to death.
The paramedics ran up the stairs but they were back down again within seconds. I just looked at them and said... I know.
An investigation found that carbon monoxide had seeped through the brickwork from a neighbouring property while they slept. Dominic would have been overcome by the gas within 5 minutes. When she heard this, Stacey had to ask what CO poisoning was. She had never heard of it, let alone bought a CO alarm.
Stacey has since set up the Dominic Rodgers Trust to help raise awareness of carbon monoxide poisoning. She believes Project SHOUT is “a brilliant endeavour”.
I had never heard of CO, let alone bought a CO alarm.
Hopefully people will learn about carbon monoxide and go out and buy an alarm.
Louise Aspinall and her family were saved from CO poisoning
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Photo of Louise Aspinall, with her permission. Portrait, 1200 × 1500px, WebP.
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Photo of Louise with her family, with permission. Landscape, 1600 × 1067px, WebP.
Louise had a CO alarm near her recently installed boiler. When it went off one day, she honestly thought something was wrong with the alarm. She rang the gas engineer, who thought the boiler was probably fine but advised her to open the windows and doors just in case, and explained how to turn the boiler off. The original boiler fitter came back and found high levels of carbon monoxide were entering the property through the pipes.
This little piece of machinery has potentially saved four lives.
Further investigation found that 7,000ppm of CO had come from their boiler that day, far above the levels a CO alarm is designed to detect. [VERIFY: 7,000ppm figure and this wording with the technical team (#9)] Louise's story shows that even new or recently serviced appliances can be dangerous.
Our boiler was new, top of the range and very efficient. I didn’t think there was the possibility of it going wrong.
The haunting thing about carbon monoxide poisoning is that it is so preventable.
I can’t bear to think about what would have happened if we didn’t have the alarm.
To share your story with Project SHOUT, call 0800 9179 931.
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Sources, symptoms and who is most at risk.
What to look for when you choose a carbon monoxide alarm.
A quick checklist and trusted retailers.
