There but for the grace of God

[Ian J]

We like to grab the last bit of sunshine of the year by going abroad in the half term week at the end of October. We've done Portugal twice this year so thought that we would try a different flavour by going Greek.

I rather fancied Corfu as it's a lovely island but too full of lager louts in season thus best left until Spring or Autumn. The only hotel that we really considered was the Louis Corcyra and it remained top of our holiday list until we decided that the weather on Corfu in late October was a bit dicey so decided to go to Spain instead.

If we hadn't had the worry about the weather we would have been there at the same time as the family who's two children were so tragically killed by what now seems to be a gas leak into their hotel room, and who knows - it could have been us instead.

[alexs2]

That sort of near-miss is quite un-nerving,isnt it.....I remember at the time of the Madrid train bombings,how a close member of family was fortunate enough to be late for work,for no good reason,and missed the awful carnage of that day.

It sometimes makes you reflect on how luck/fate/whatever does play a large part in things at times.

[Ultima]

Bloody hell. Just thinking "what if" makes you shudder.

Don't think about it Ian, just enjoy what you've got.

Martin

[JohnG]

It makes you think doesn't it. 2 years ago my boiler was condemned by the gas board due to inadequate ventilation as they changed the laws. My rather arrogant view on the matter was that it's been OK for the last 10 years or so and would not have become dangerous overnight just because they changed the laws. So I ripped off the sticker saying "Do not use this appliance" and continued using it for another 2 years. But this latest tragedy has made me think about things and I'm looking at getting a loan to get the boiler replaced with a modern combi.

[RockStrongo]

More cock Moorcock Michael Moorcock you fervently moan

[JohnG]

Is this a wok ......
Lol - oops we might get into trouble for this insane Half Man Half Biscuit lyric banter !

[Duncan G]

It should be compulsory to fit carbon monoxide detectors in homes/holiday homes.

Can you get ones which you can take with you on holiday just to be on the safe side.?

[JohnG]

You can buy cheap credit card sized detectors which change colour if there's a problem but I'm not really sure how accurate and effective they are.

[Mr.D]

Originally Posted by JohnG

You can buy cheap credit card sized detectors which change colour if there's a problem but I'm not really sure how accurate and effective they are.

They are rubbish they seem to turn black over a 6 month period , you are never quite sure whether they have actually turned black or not .

The electric smoke alarm type ones are fine though. I have one that I don't actually mount on the ceiling I just move it between the utility room where the central heating lives and the room above it which we use as a guest bedroom.

My guess would be you only need 1 or maybe two of these in the vicinity of any relevant devices ( boilers , gas fires , water heaters).

I think they should make smoke alarms and CO detectors mandatory. They should be installed as a matter of course in new buildings at the time of construction and they should be mains operated with a backup battery/capacitor for power cuts.

[Adrenochrome]

We were at the bus stop in Salou the day before the bomb went off a few years back as well