Family of five were poisoned by fumes from flue in the loft (From Southend Standard)
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Family of five were poisoned by fumes from flue in the loft
10:00am Thursday 31st May 2012 in News By Jasmin McDermott
Gassed – Karine and Dean Whitehead with their children Baylon, Sekeilie and Caysen and the family’s dog
AN investigation has been launched after a family were left with deadly gas pouring into their loft.
Karine and Dean Whitehead found a flue pipe, which pumps poisonous gas from the boiler out of the house, was damaged when they ventured into their loft last Thursday.
The mum-of-three, who, along with her family, had been suffering from spells of unexplained illness, immediately contacted South Essex Homes, and was told to turn off her boiler.
The company, which manages council-owned homes, has now launched an investigation to find out how the pipe became damaged.
Karine, 28, who lives in Hornby Avenue, Westcliff with her children Sekeilie, ten, Baylon, eight and three-year-old Caysen, said: “As soon as I found out I was so worried about the safety of my children.
“They have all had sore throats and I have been feeling dizzy and a bit sick, but I dismissed it as being poorly and illness going round.
“We went into the attic to bring some stuff down and my husband saw the pipe was not connected so instead of the gases being taken out of the house, carbon monoxide and other gases were building in there.
“I don’t know how long it has been going on for but I have been feeling ill for about three weeks.”
What caused the damage is a mystery. Diamond Build contractors, hired by South Essex Homes, replaced the tiles on the roof of the home in January, but insist they never touched the flue pipe as part of their work.
In addition, South Essex Homes said the property passed its gas safety check in April following a visit from a specialist gas contractor.
Karine added: “What happened is dangerous and the lives of my children were endangered because of it.
“The whole thing has really worried me and I have booked an appointment with the doctor to check my health.”
A spokeswoman from South Essex Homes confirmed it was not yet clear what caused the damage to the pipe or when it happened, but a gas engineer fixed the damaged pipe on Saturday.
Chief executive Mike Gatrell said: “Although they are extremely rare, we take incidents such as this very seriously.
“We have asked the relevant contractors to work with our officers to carry out a full assessment of what occurred at this particular home.
“We put residents’ safety at the forefront of our approach to maintaining homes and are concerned even at the suggestion any individual’s safety may have been placed at risk.”
Comments(9)
v.randy
says...
10:42am Thu 31 May 12
After all you're not paying for the fix out of your own pocket.. are you!!!!!!!!!!!
This is a very generous country probable too generous..get a reality check.
j-w
says...
11:07am Thu 31 May 12
Barry Bas
says...
11:07am Thu 31 May 12
As BIRLIS above says it is worth having a carbon monoxide sensor as well as a smoke alarm. I have a combined smoke alarm/CO sensor at home.
nicknows
says...
12:16pm Thu 31 May 12
11:07am Thu 31 May 12
I think it it is a good thing that they contacted the Echo as it highlights a danger that many people don't think about until it is too late.
Could not agree more with this comment.
So many contractors take short cuts that it is possible that the gas safety check was not carried out correctly. The strong winds we have had of late could have caused the connection to weaken. Pushing something up into the loft space could have caused the problem.
Carbon monoxide is a silent killer. As the property is rented the council (or a private landlord for that matter) has a legal obligation to ensure the tenant’s safety as far as things like this are concerned. I am surprised that the council had not fitted a carbon monoxide sensor/alarm in the loft space.
As to the undertone in your comments ‘v.randy’ totally uncalled for!
notalocalman
says...
12:44pm Thu 31 May 12
CO2 is lighter than air and so would have just built up in the loft and seeped out through the gaps in the eaves rather than going downstairs to affect anyone else in the house.....unless the family were in the habit of spending time in their loft of course??
Firestormgjc
says...
1:22pm Thu 31 May 12
BTW CO2 is Carbon Dioxide CO is Carbon Monoxide
save southend
says...
7:03am Fri 1 Jun 12
v.randy wrote:This must be one of the most stupid comments ever put on here, this family look a decent bunch the fact they have social housing may be because they just cant get a mortgage, if they rented from the private sector the landlord would find himself in court, not so a social housing landlord who uses contractors that dont give a toss about the standard of work , as for the gas test this should have been done after the roof work as the flue would have been disturbed by roofers , its a criminal offence to tamper with a gas appliance
Lucky that you're a not a homeowner or you'd have to pay for it yourself..you've got a house of the state why contact The Echo?
After all you're not paying for the fix out of your own pocket.. are you!!!!!!!!!!!
This is a very generous country probable too generous..get a reality check.
do you not realise this entire family could have died, just read the press, people die from co , and why are there not co detectors , £8 each , SEH do not have enough qualified surveyors to check contractors or come up with prevention ideas they spend their money on daft coloured newsletters and a whole department that sends out surveys , before you say I dont know about these things , I have a refurbishment company and when it comes to safety everthing is checked 3 yes 3 times so when residents move in they can enjoy a nice SAFE home ,
Thecountrysgonetopot!
says...
7:28pm Fri 1 Jun 12
BIRLIS says...
10:41am Thu 31 May 12
Lucky escape!