Stirling University student died from preventable carbon monoxide poisoning, inquest hears

A Stirling University student died from preventable carbon monoxide poisoning, after inhaling the gas from a faulty heater.

 Tom Hill, from the New Forest, had been staying with his girlfriend Charlotte and her family at Glenmark Cottage, near Tarfside in Angus, in October 2015 when he collapsed in the bathroom. He later died in an ambulance on the way to the hospital.  

At an inquest at Winchester Coroner’s Court on 2nd June, Coroner Jason Pegg recorded a conclusion of accidental death, stating that Tom inhaled a “fatal quantity” of the highly poisonous gas while preparing for a bath. 

The 18-year-old had inhaled the gas from a a faulty LPG cabinet heater that should not have been used indoors.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found that the heater should not have been used in such a small room, which had no ventilation as the windows had been painted shut. Mr Pegg also added that damage to the heater was a “crucial factor”.  

Mr Pegg said: “It is quite clear that this type of heater, and the size of heater, shouldn’t have been used in the bathroom which I’m told had the size of 11 cubic metres.  

“The bathroom was simply too small for that heater.  

“In addition, there was no ventilation. The windows had been painted shut and could not be opened.” 

The inquest heard that an alarm activated the night before Tom’s death, prompting Charlotte’s father, Mark Beard, to switch off various devices in the kitchen. However, it did not occur to him to evacuate the property.  

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“One of my lifelong regrets is that I hadn’t taken notice of the bathroom heater as seriously as I might have done,” Mr Beard told the court.  

“I didn’t tell anyone to get out of the cottage, it didn’t occur to me to ask people to get out.” 

According to the Bournemouth Echo, Mr Beard also said that the LPG heaters were “ubiquitously used” at the off-grid cottage, which had no electricity or mains gas, and that there were no clear instructions on the cabinet heater indicating that it shouldn’t be used indoors. 

The court was also told that the aquaculture student died 11 days after the holiday home operator had been informed that a previous tenant had become unwell. In 2023, a Fatal Accident Inquiry (FAI) in Scotland concluded that reasonable precautions could have prevented the death. 

In 2021, Cottage owners Burghill Farms and Piers Le Cheminant, who sublet the property, were prosecuted for health and safety breaches. Burghill Farms and Le Cheminant were fined £120,000 and £2,000 respectively. 

Mr Pegg said he would raise a prevention of future deaths report about the use of such heaters.  

Mr Pegg told the inquest: “There is a warning within the box where you put the gas canister, but anyone, such as the Beard family, turning up to a rented cottage, they would not know that the heater should not be used in such close confines. 

“In rented cottages, and tenant cottages, there are going to be heaters of this sort which are in rooms which are too small [and] this gives rise to future deaths.  

“As you sadly know, carbon monoxide is very much a silent killer and as much awareness when using potentially lethal devices that can be raised is so much better for everybody.” 

Tom’s father, Jerry Hill, paid tribute to his son at the inquest: “He was quite an unusual boy, very interested in wildlife and had a real understanding of different creatures, and he was fascinated by how ecosystems work.  

“He didn’t have a very long life, but in the short time he had, he really made the most of his time.  

“He had his whole life ahead of him”. 

Featured image via Facebook