Wimbledon Parents Continue Carbon Monoxide Awareness Campaign


Gas Safety Week is springboard to highlight dangers

The Wimbledon-based parents of a 31-year-old woman who died from carbon monoxide poisoning are continuing their awareness campaign during Gas Safety Week.

Avril and Gordon Samuel, from Alwyne Road, have been campaigning to raise awareness of the dangers of carbon monoxide following the tragic death of their daughter Katie Haines in 2010.

The Katie Haines Trust has commissioned a You Gov survey revealing 40% of Brits do not have an audible carbon monoxide alarm.

Two fifths of people surveyed (40%) did not know that the only safe colour for a flame on a gas appliance is blue. Many thought it could be yellow (11%), orange (14%) or green (4%), or they had no idea at all (15%). If a pilot light is yellow, or even if it has a slight yellow or orange tint, it could be filling your home with carbon monoxide.

NHS statistics reveal that every year in the UK, more than 200 people are taken to hospital with suspected carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning, and around 50 people are killed.  

Incorrectly installed, poorly maintained or poorly ventilated household appliances such as cookers, heaters and central heating boilers are the most common causes of accidental exposure to carbon monoxide.

The Katie Haines Memorial Trust has also released a video called #causeforalarm to highlight the dangers of the silent killer that is carbon monoxide.

Gordon Samuel, founder of the trust who spoke at the House of Commons launch of Gas Safety Week (September 19-25), said: “My wife Avril and I lost our precious daughter Katie to carbon monoxide. Weeks after her wedding, she was poisoned by carbon monoxide leaking from a defective boiler in her home.

“We formed the Katie Haines Memorial Trust to try and raise awareness of this terrible ‘silent killer’ and make sure that nobody else loses loved ones in such a senseless, avoidable way.”

September 22, 2016