Carbon monoxide: "It's an accident waiting to happen"

Thursday 05 October 2017

The family of a man who died on his boat earlier this year from carbon monoxide poisoning are calling for alarms to be installed in boats, caravans and homes to avoid another tragedy.

An Inquest heard that Kenneth, 'Ken', Jeffery (73) was overcome by the exhaust fumes on his boat on 16 February, after the cockpit filled up with carbon monoxide within minutes.

A former ship pilot and First Officer in the Merchant Navy, Ken was extremely experienced with boats. Born in Surrey, he moved with his family to St Brelade at a young age. It's in the bay that he first learned to row at the age of seven and from then on, he seemed to spend more time at sea than on solid ground. Ken was also very careful in everything he did. His wife Margaret Jeffery and his daughter Emma, describe him as a "belts and braces" man.

Emma says: "He was very careful of safety and could always see any potential danger. He was always the first to warn us and make sure we are safe. This is why this is ironic and awful. You can't make sense of it. If that can happen to someone so experienced and careful, it makes you worry about people who are not so experienced."

Pictured: The Old Harbour in St Helier, where Ken kept his boat, 'Mais Oui'. (Google Maps)

Ken was also a very funny man, who both Margaret and Emma remember fondly. Margaret and Ken were together for 21 years and got married six years ago. "He was a wonderful man, very very kind and funny. It took me fifteen years to say 'yes', but I am glad I did. We had a lovely wedding!" she says. Very talented when it came to doing impressions, Ken could often be found acting out scenes from 'Fawlty Towers' or singing like Elvis Presley, of whom he was fan. Emma remembers: "We used to listen to ABBA and he would change words to songs, mostly because he didn't know the real words. But it was so hilarious that neither of us could come up for breath."

On 16 February, Ken, who was trying to sell his boat named 'Mais Oui' went down to the Old Harbour to get the engine started ahead of the arrival of a potential buyer. The canopy was down with only the backflap rolled up, and the cockpit filled up with carbon monoxide within minutes as the wind blew in the exhaust fumes. Ken was found unresponsive on the boat with the engine still running, and doctors later found 68% carbon monoxide in his blood.

The boat was thoroughly inspected by engineers and no fault was detected. The use of the canopy is not to blame either, as although it could have helped with ventilation, it wouldn't have had any effect on the fumes coming in. Emma says: "It wasn't even a particularly windy day, everything on the boat was fine. It was very unlucky. It is just like with every freak accident, it is a whole set of circumstances that all have to happen at the second. But there are so many people using canopies and who sit on the boat doing work without realising the dangers of it. It is an accident waiting to happen."

To spare another family the tragedy they both went through, Margaret and Emma have decided to speak out to warn of the dangers of carbon monoxide - "a silent killer."  Margaret says: "Ken went through so many dangers as a pilot to meet the big ships, sometimes he would be blown by gale or would have to jump from the ship in atrocious conditions. He couldn't swim and this was before you had to wear lifejackets. The boat was his favourite place. We never thought about carbon monoxide as a risk. It is very tragic because it could have been so easily avoided. He was only 73." 

Lee Battrick, a marine surveyor and consultant who completed an accident report on Ken's death, also wants boat owners to realise the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning is real and that it can happen to anyone, even the most experienced. He explained: "Whether the boat is well maintained, old or new, there is a potential of the gas coming in. It can happen when the boat is stationary or whilst moving, it's called the 'station wagon effect,' or even if you are swimming behind a boat that is running. Everybody needs to understand that the CO comes from burning and that there is a big cloud of gas at the back of the boat. The ventilation is vital as any boat is a confined space." 

As carbon monoxide is odourless, the only way to perceive its presence is to fit a detector on the boat. Margaret and Emma are now trying to raise awareness of this so that Ken's death was not in vain. Emma says: "There must be so many people who come close to being poisoned without realising it. They will think it's a bug or that the fumes are getting to them without thinking of carbon monoxide. You don't smell it so the only way to protect yourself is to have a detector."

Both women say that detectors should be fitted not only on boats, but also on caravans and in homes. They are hoping that a law will be brought in to protect people and make CO detectors mandatory like smoke detectors are.