A DIY expert has taken to Instagram to issue a stark warning about a “silent killer” she claims many people across the nation are ignoring, putting themselves and their families at risk.
Emma, an adept do it yourself enthusiast, noted that although numerous warnings have been made public about the dangers of inhaling carbon monoxide, a huge number of homes and businesses are disregarding such advice and endangering lives.
In her latest post, Emma revealed that during a recent hotel stay, her room featured an open fireplace but lacked any detector for the poisonous gas, which prompted her to raise concerns. In a poignant message, she wrote: “This is why they call it the silent killer. Don’t be a statistic you need a carbon monoxide alarm if you have an open fire in your room, even if you’re competent at building fires, even if you’ve cracked open a window.”
Her decision to raise the alert came in response to the “unhinged” feedback from her previous post about the hotel experience, in which some followers suggested she was overreacting.
She forcefully explained: “Let me tell you about why this is important,” stressing the fact that carbon monoxide remains tasteless, odourless, invisible, yet fatally dangerous, and impossible to detect without an alarm.
Emma pointed out the legal requirement in the UK for all rooms featuring fuel-burning appliances, which include wood burners, open fires, and boilers, to have a carbon monoxide alarm installed. It is necessary because carbon monoxide poisoning claims over 40 lives annually in England and Wales.
Emma retaliated against those who said she “whinged” about her hotel post, adding: “Let me tell you about why this is important. Carbon monoxide is a tasteless, odourless, invisible and lethal gas – you will not know it’s there.
“It can leak out of any fuel-burning appliance – this why you have to by law in the UK have a carbon monoxide alarm in any room that has one of these appliances, which can be a wood burner, an open fire, a boiler. Over 40 people every year die from carbon monoxide poisoning in England and Wales.”
One supporter among Emma’s 120,000 followers commended her post, saying: “Great post. The government department I work for enforces the gas regulations and I see firsthand that many of the general public are still unaware of the dangers of carbon monoxide.”
Another follower issued a dire warning: “A few days ago a 13 year old girl died in Vienna when having a bath with the combi-boiler being installed in the bathroom. No CO2 alarm present and no window open, and boiler exhaust faulty. Draw your conclusions from that.”
A third shared their own troubling account: “Quite right. Having suffered for a time breathing gas fumes I know how important it is to have these detectors installed.” Whilst a fourth individual recounted a perilous incident: “Bought a house with a wood burner. First service by a chimney sweep they condemned it for being dangerously installed this included no proper venting, no CO detector and when he took it out they had used cardboard behind and under to level has a HETAS cert. So dangerous!”
