Latest news with #MichaelPemberton
The Sun
28-07-2025
- Health
- The Sun
Man with dementia dies after accidentally pouring washing detergent in his cup of tea instead of milk
A MAN with dementia died after pouring white-coloured washing detergent into a cup of tea instead of milk in 'an apparent confusion'. David Hayes, 82, from Bolton, accidentally ingested the liquid and was admitted to hospital the next day, on April 16. 2 He had vomited after drinking the tea and is believed to have inhaled the detergent and stomach acid into his lungs causing fatal damage. Doctors diagnosed him with pneumonitis, swelling of the lungs, thought to have been triggered by chemical aspiration. Despite treatment with antibiotics, steroids and pain relief, his condition worsened and he sadly died five days later, on April 21. An inquest held at Bolton Coroner's Court on July 17 concluded his death was accidental. The official cause was pneumonitis and aspiration due to ingestion of a chemical substance. David had Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia which affects memory, thinking skills and other mental abilities. He had previously been discharged from hospital the day before his final admission, following an earlier accidental detergent ingestion. Coroner Michael Pemberton said: 'This had occurred when he had made a cup of tea at home and put washing detergent into the cup instead of milk after an apparent confusion. "He had vomited following the ingestion and it is likely that he aspirated.' Following the inquest, the coroner issued a formal warning to the Government and major charities, urging action to prevent similar deaths. He wrote to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, Age UK, Dementia UK and the Alzheimer's Society, highlighting safety concerns around the packaging of household cleaning products. He said the detergent had been stored in a plastic bottle that resembled a milk carton, with a screw top and no childproof features. This, he said, made it 'easily accessible by a person with reduced capacity or dementia, or even a child'. While the liquid was classed as low toxicity, it still caused vomiting and aspiration in Mr Hayes, ultimately leading to his death. The corner said there was "a risk of similar events". He said this was because "the colouring of the liquid is similar to items which a person suffering from an infirmity such as dementia may get confused - here milk". He also warned that "public knowledge of these risks is not likely to be at a level where households in which vulnerable adults reside are aware of the need to safeguard detergents and make them less accessible." In a similar case two years ago, a dad-of-five died after mistakenly pouring washing detergent on a bowl of cornflakes instead of milk. Tom McDonald died in March 2023. He had been diagnosed with dementia five years earlier. Is it ageing or dementia? Dementia - the most common form of which is Alzheimer's - comes on slowly over time. As the disease progresses, symptoms can become more severe. But at the beginning, the symptoms can be subtle or mistaken for normal memory issues related to ageing. The US National Institute on Aging gives some examples of what is considered normal forgetfulness in old age, and dementia disease. You can refer to these above. For example, it is normal for an ageing person to forget which word to use from time-to-time, but difficulting having conversation would be more indicative of dementia. Katie Puckering, Head of Alzheimer's Research UK's Information Services team, previously told The Sun: 'We quite commonly as humans put our car keys somewhere out of the ordinary and it takes longer for us to find them. 'As you get older, it takes longer for you to recall, or you really have to think; What was I doing? Where was I? What distracted me? Was it that I had to let the dog out? And then you find the keys by the back door. 'That process of retrieving the information is just a bit slower in people as they age. 'In dementia, someone may not be able to recall that information and what they did when they came into the house. 'What may also happen is they might put it somewhere it really doesn't belong. For example, rather than putting the milk back in the fridge, they put the kettle in the fridge.' 2
The Independent
10-06-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Kickboxer, 15, had fought man, 34, week before fatal bout, inquest hears
A coroner has told an inquest he was 'shocked' that a 15-year-old kickboxer who died after a bout had fought a 34-year-old man the week before. Alex Eastwood, from Fazakerley, Liverpool, collapsed after the third and final two-minute round of a 'light contact' kickboxing match against a 17-year-old opponent in a ring at a gym in Platt Bridge, Wigan, on June 29 2024. He was rushed to hospital but had suffered a serious head injury and died three days later. Unusually, Michael Pemberton, assistant coroner for Manchester (West), ahead of Alex's inquest, which started on Monday, had already raised concerns with the Government in March this year about the safety of children in combat sports and the apparent lack of regulation and safeguarding measures. Alex took up kickboxing aged nine, trained five times a week and had a 'meteoric' rise in the sport, having competed at high levels, Bolton Coroner's Court heard. He had grown to 6ft 7in, weighed 80kg and had just finished his GCSEs the week before the fight was arranged with another opponent at the gym in Wigan. The bout was to be the 'main event' but was an unofficial or unsanctioned event as it was a charity fundraiser, not a title fight under the main governing body for the sport in the UK, Kickboxing GB. Ian Hollett, who was Alex's coach and chief instructor at the gym where he trained, Hurricane Combat and Fitness in Liverpool, said his club was not affiliated to Kickboxing GB and there were no rules which stated clubs had to be recognised by governing bodies. Mr Hollett, who said he had more than 30 years' experience in martial arts and was a 16-times world champion, set up his gym in 2011 and currently has around 400 child members. He said they had only had a safeguarding officer in place since 2024 and this is carried out by a member of the club who happens to be a social worker. The coroner then asked about a tournament Alex took part in the previous weekend, where he fought a 34-year-old man in a 'light contact' competition. The event was run by the BCKA (British Chinese Kickboxing Association), a franchise, Mr Hollett said, where Alex fought eight or nine single elimination rounds. Coroner Mr Pemberton said: 'How do you have a situation where a 15-year-old child faces an adult in a contact sport?' Mr Hollett said 'discussions' about Alex competing against adults had started with his father and other coaches the previous year. He continued: 'He had not been beat for two years, he progressed rapidly, it is a customary thing that happens in our sport.' 'That's what worries me,' the coroner replied. 'You have a child fighting an adult. If that happened in the street it would be very serious. How is it acceptable?' Mr Hollett said: 'He was untouchable, pretty much. He was exceptionally developed physically, technically excellent.' He said Alex had fought adult opponents earlier in the year and although his own club and gym no longer allow such bouts, only one national body, the International Combat Organisation (ICO), has outlawed the practice. Mr Hollett added: 'Every other governing body would and has and does allow it.' The coroner replied: 'I'm quite shocked by that, I have to say. I'm not often shocked.' Mr Hollett said he was not present for any pre-bout meeting with the two fighters, referee and any other coaches to set the 'ground rules' for how much contact was to be allowed. The coroner said both Alex and his opponent had won world championship titles, it was the 'main event' of the night and the objective was to win. He continued: 'But no meeting before to put down ground rules, 'This is just an exhibition match, lads, keep that in mind?'' Mr Hollett said: 'At any competition they are trying to win. The framework is, they are not trying to knock each other out.' Dale Bannister, event organiser and owner of the TKMA gym where the bout took place, said the 'ground rules' for the match had been agreed between himself and Alex's other coach Daniel Wigelsworth as a 'light contact' fight. But as Mr Wigelsworth said 'Alex can bang' they agreed to 'let it go a bit' on the understanding neither boxer was allowed to win by a knock-out, or stoppage, that is by fighting the opponent into submission. Adam Korn, legal counsel representing the Eastwood family, suggested the fight was in a 'grey area' between light and heavier contact allowed. Mr Bannister said: 'Some are rougher than others. You can see if a fighter is trying to knock someone out.' Earlier this year the coroner wrote a Prevention of Future Deaths report to the Government about the lack of regulation of contact sports for children, with no minimum standards or risk management. The inquest continues on Wednesday.
