One death from CO is one too many

LEAMINGTON, U.K. - July 24, 2013 - PRLog -- One death from carbon monoxide poisoning, is one too many – this was the clear message from a major conference staged by the Institution of Gas Engineers & Managers (IGEM).

Carbon Monoxide – Ignorance can be fatal, attracted more than 200 delegates from across the heating industry, the medical profession, the emergency services, local authorities and the families of Carbon Monoxide (CO) victims.

Many speakers want government legislation to ensure that where carbon-burning appliances are fitted, CO detectors are also installed.

Plumb and Parts Center, which runs an annual month-long Wise up to Co campaign across its 500 branch network, was one of the delegates. It saw sales of CO detectors rise by 18 per cent during its campaign in May.

The conference also heard from Stacey Rodgers, who established the Dominic Rogers Trust, following the death of her 10-year-old son. He died after gas leaked into their home from a neighbouring property.

“Dominic lives in me and our campaign. I won’t rest until every home in Britain has a CO detector,” said Stacey.

Despite the fact that *84 per cent of homes in the country have smoke alarms, just **10-15 per cent have CO detectors.

Campaigning MP Barry Sheerman, Co Chair, Carbon Monoxide All Fuel Action Forum, said: “There is good practice but it is not happening often enough and fast enough. This conference is about how we do it better. Seeing good practice like Plumb and Parts’ initiative is fantastic, but the number of homes with CO detectors is still too low, we need parity with smoke detectors.”

**Council for Gas Detection and Environmental Monitoring (CoGDEM)
*Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG)