The death by carbon monoxide poisoning of a student holidaying in the Angus Glens could have been avoided, a sheriff has ruled.
Stirling University agriculture student Thomas Hill, 18, from Hampshire, died after being exposed to the toxic gas from a faulty heater in the bathroom of remote Glenmark Cottage, Tarfside, by Edzell, in October 2015.
He had been visiting with his partner Charlotte Beard and members of her family.
The cottage was owned by Burghill Farms, a partnership which – at the time of Mr Hill’s death – was run by the Earl and Countess of Dalhousie with their son Simon Ramsay, Lord Ramsay.
The property was sub-let and run by Piers Le Cheminant, who was fined £2,000 fine for breaches of gas safety and health and safety regulations, to which he pled guilty.
Burghill Farms was fined £120,000 at Dundee Sheriff Court.
Findings and recommendations
A fatal accident inquiry was also held to establish what went wrong and whether recommendations should be made to avoid similar tragedy.
In a ruling released on Tuesday, Sheriff Paul Brown said “there were precautions which could reasonably have been taken and, had they been taken, might realistically have resulted in the death, or any accident resulting in the death, being avoided.”
He said:
- The faulty heater – and all mobile gas cabinet heaters – could have been removed from the cottage;
- A system of annual inspections could have been instigated by a qualified engineer (the one used was not suitably qualified);
- Written gas safety advice and guidance could have been made available to guests on what to do in the event of the carbon monoxide alarm being activated.
It was established the carbon monoxide alarm was not properly installed.
The sheriff went on to recommend:
- Local authorities in Scotland should consider making it a condition of short-term let licences that holders provide specific gas safety information to guests;
- If there is a mobile gas cabinet heater in the accommodation, the manufacturer’s instruction manual should be provided along with a warning that any such appliance should not be moved.
Holiday tragedy
The inquiry heard neither the tenant or owner of the cottage knew the gas engineer who checked the heater was unqualified to work with that type of appliance.
A later health and safety check discovered numerous faults in the property’s gas installations, including four deemed “immediately dangerous”.
The incorrectly-installed carbon monoxide monitor had sounded previously, in 2014 and 2015 – just ten days before the fatality – but been ignored.
Concerns were raised among Mr Hill’s holidaying party when they arrived in October 2015 but no action was taken.
On the afternoon of October 28, Mr Hill went for a bath and members of his partner’s family had to break down the door with an axe when he was unresponsive to their calls.
He died on the way to hospital.
‘Tragic example of dangers’
Sheriff Brown concluded: “Thomas Oliver Hill’s death resulted from a concatenation of missed opportunities.
“The gas cabinet heater which caused his death passed the landlords, the tenant who was a holiday letting operator and a gas engineer.
“The carbon monoxide alarm sounded three times and a total of eight holidaymakers heard it.
“Each moment represented a step in the chain when Mr Hill’s death might have been averted.
“Mr Hill’s death was a tragic example of the dangers of carbon monoxide in general and the dangers of mobile gas cabinet heaters in particular.”
He added: “Since the death of Mr Hill in 2015 the legal framework for gas safety in holiday letting accommodation has moved on substantially.
“It is to be hoped that the recommendations in this determination will serve to strengthen these additional steps.”
Partner left devastated
After the sheriff court proceedings ended in October 2021, Ms Beard said: “The consequences of Tom’s death have been truly devastating.
“His family members have lost a dearly loved son and brother – a loss impossible for any of us to contemplate.
“In my abject grief, I miscarried our baby exactly one month later.
“I lost my love, my baby and future I had planned with Tom.
“I and other members of our family have been left traumatised and haunted by the graphic memory of that day.”
Lord Ramsay said: “We previously offered our heartfelt condolences to Thomas Hill’s family and friends and do so again today.
“Our company’s role in this absolutely tragic matter is the source of deepest regret.”
A spokesman for Burghill Farms said: “We express our heartfelt condolences again to Thomas Hill’s family and to the Beard family and hope the fatal accident inquiry and previous court proceedings have given them some comfort and answers.
“On our part, we genuinely believed at the time of Thomas’ death, suitable gas safety measures were in place as the tenant who had taken responsibility for letting the cottage had arranged regular inspections by an engineer and this position is reflected in the inquiry’s determination.
“At the time, we were unaware of certain aspects of complex gas safety regulations but had we been made aware that the engineer appointed to carry out the checks on the gas heaters at the cottage was not suitably qualified to undertake these particular checks, we would have taken alternative action.
“The sheriff accepted this in his findings.
“We accept our share of responsibility for the omissions in the gas safety check system in place at the time which is a source of deepest regret.”
