Latest news with #TomHill
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Parents of university student, 18, who died from carbon monoxide poisoning at holiday cottage say portable gas heaters should be banned
The parents of a university student who died after he inhaled a 'fatal quantity' of carbon monoxide while staying in a remote aristocrat-owned holiday cottage have called for 'dangerous' portable gas heaters to be banned. Tom Hill, 18, was preparing to take a bath when he succumbed to the highly poisonous gas leaking out of the 'lethal' device at an 'idyllic' rental home in the Scottish highlands. An inquest which took place this week, some 10 years after his tragic passing, heard the bathroom where the cabinet heater was kept was 'simply too small' - but the warning informing users of this was not obvious. While a coroner concluded that while Tom's death in October 2015 was accidental, he said there is a risk of future deaths being caused by such devices. 'Proud' parents Jerry and Alison Hill have now called for more awareness to be raised on the dangers of carbon monoxide and portable gas heaters. They say 'there needs to be government safety rulings' on carbon monoxide. They said that not enough has been done to confront the dangers of the poisonous gas in the decade since Tom passed, and said it should be made 'really clear' on what people should do when a carbon monoxide alarm sounds. The carbon monoxide alarm had sounded the night before Tom died, the inquest heard. Mr Hill said: 'We still think that it's surprising that you can buy heaters. 'Quite often the instructions that come with the heaters aren't very clear, and I question whether they are fit for purpose really. 'I also think that there doesn't seem to be any sort of structure of people who can maintain these heaters, because I think they are basically seen as disposables. 'You buy one, and then throw them out.' The father, who lives in Salisbury, Wilts, continued: 'And also, one of the problems with these heaters, is that quite often, they are used by quite vulnerable people in relatively low cost accommodation and they probably haven't got access to instructions, they are not going to open windows because their property is cold. 'So, from that point of view, they are very dangerous, in our opinion. 'Another thing is, people aren't really aware of the dangers of carbon monoxide. 'There needs to be government safety rulings - and films. There's no information going out. The CO alarm had been set off the day before Tom died but the family believed the fridge to be the cause and it stopped ringing when they took it outside 'From our point of view, we wouldn't have been aware of the dangers of carbon monoxide ourselves, before Tom's death. 'Not really, not in a real sense.' Mr Hill said people are 'trained' with what to do with a smoke alarm - but carbon monoxide alarms are a 'totally different thing'. The inquest at Winchester Coroner's Court, Hants, heard that in October 2015, Tom was staying at Glenmark Cottage in Angus, Scotland, with his girlfriend Charlotte Beard and her family. The house had no electricity or mains gas, and the heating was provided by a wood-burning stove and portable gas heaters. Mark Beard, Charlotte's father, told the hearing that LPG [Liquefied Petroleum Gas] heaters were 'ubiquitously used' in the property. He said there was a cabinet heater located in the bathroom and a carbon monoxide alarm in the kitchen, which sounded on the evening before Tom's death. Tom, who studied aquaculture at Stirling University in Scotland, but was from Lyndhurst in Hampshire, decided to take a bath on the afternoon of October 28. Inside the bathroom - which had windows which had been sealed shut with paint - was one of the heaters. Mr Beard said he heard his daughter knocking on the bathroom door some time after the teen had entered the bathroom. The engineer described rushing downstairs as he heard Charlotte, then 18, grow increasingly distressed as she did not hear a response from Tom. The family used a wooden axe to forcibly open the 'solid' bathroom door and Mr Beard quickly unlatched the lock. He said he was greeted by an 'intense atmosphere' with 'a strong smell of unburnt gases'. 'It smelt like the heater wasn't operating properly,' he told the inquest. 'The heater was also making a loud buzzing which was very unusual.' The teenager was 'slumped' by the door, while the bath water was still running. Mr Beard said his 'immediate thought was carbon monoxide poisoning, but the alarm in the kitchen was not sounding at that time'. The father tried to open the sash windows in the bathroom to 'eliminate fumes', but said they had been painted shut and 'wouldn't open'. An ambulance was called for the teenager but he passed away in the vehicle, which was travelling from Brechin to Dundee. Jason Pegg - area coroner for Hampshire, Southampton, and Portsmouth - concluded Tom's death was accidental. But, after hearing details of cabinet heaters, he said he will issue a prevention of future deaths report. Mr Pegg said: '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 Mr Hill added that he thinks more needs to be done on what to do when a carbon monoxide alarm sounds. 'It should be made really clear to people what to do in these circumstances,' he added,' 'I don't think people do know what to do when [alarms] go off..' Glenmark Cottage, located near the small hamlet of Tarfside, was owned by the Earl of Dalhousie and his heir Lord Ramsay. While owned by the Dalhousie estate, it was rented out by retired teacher Piers Le Cheminant. Burghill Farms, who trade as Dalhousie Estates, and Mr Le Cheminant were prosecuted for breaches of Health & Safety regulations in 2021. Burghill Farms was fined £120,000 while Le Cheminant was ordered to pay £2,000 at Dundee Sheriff Court. A Fatal Accident Inquiry report into Tom's death took place in 2023 and found that the heaters were unsuitable for the property and no system was in place for their regular maintenance.
Daily Mail
02-06-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
University student, 18, died of carbon monoxide poisoning from portable heater in aristocrat's cottage that should not have been used indoors, inquest hears
An 18-year-old university student died of carbon monoxide poisoning from a portable heater in an aristocrat's cottage that shouldn't have been used indoors, an inquest was told. Tom Hill was about to have a bath when he inhaled the highly poisonous gas leaking out of a portable heater at Glenmark Cottage, nestled in the Scottish Highlands, and collapsed shortly afterwards. The Stirling University student had been staying with his girlfriend Charlotte and her immediate family on October 28, 2015, where it was heard the device was situated in a bathroom, which had windows sealed by paint and was 'simply too small'. Winchester Coroner's Court was told an alarm sounded the night before Tom had died, which prompted Charlotte's father Mark Beard to switch off various devices in the kitchen, but it hadn't occurred to him to vacate the property. Mr Beard told the inquest that the LPG Heaters were 'ubiquitously used' at the property which was heated by a wood-burning stove and portable heaters, but had no electricity or mains gas. He said there were no clear instructions on the heater saying it shouldn't be used indoors, and described not checking the device despite being informed by his son that it was switched on as one of his 'life long regrets'. 'The night before Tom died, that alarm did activate,' he told the coroner's court: 'What I did was turn off all appliances in that kitchen that I thought may be sources of carbon monoxide. 'The kitchen was the place where there was the greatest number of those sources,' he added:'One of my life long regrets is that I didn't take his information about the bathroom heater as seriously as I should have done.' 'I didn't tell anyone to get out of the cottage, it didn't occur to met to get out of the cottage.' Mr Beard said he had visited the cottage, which was once owned by the Earl of Dalhousie and his heir Lord Ramsay, many times in his life, describing the location as an 'idyllic beauty' and a place to 'unwind'. Despite being owned by the Dalhousie estate, it was rented out by retired teacher Piers Le Cheminant. The night of the aquaculture student, who had a keen interest in wildlife and nature's, death, Charlotte's father recalled his daughter 'knocking' on the bathroom door and calling for him. 'When I heard the change in her tone of voice, it became more alarmed, that peaked my attention particular,' he said:'I rushed downstairs to see what was up and by the time I got there, so had my wife and son. 'Charlotte was quite distraught at not getting any response from Tom.' Mr Beard said he asked his teenage son to fetch a wooden axe which they used to forcibly open the 'solid' door to the bathroom. The engineer described an 'intense' atmosphere upon breaking into the room, which was 'hot and humid'. Describing it as a 'very visceral experience,' he added: 'It was extremely hot and the air was very humid - you could almost taste it.' Adding how there was a 'strong smell of unburnt gases', and how 'it smelt like the heater wasn't operating properly,' Mr Beard said the device was 'also making a loud buzzing which was very unusual.' Mr Beard said he lifted Tom out of the bathroom and carried him downstairs and outside into the 'fresh air'. An ambulance was called for the teenager but he passed away in the vehicle, which was travelling from Brechin to Dundee. '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,' he said. Jerry Hill, Tom's father, told the inquest that his son was 'very interested in wildlife and nature' with a particular interest in understanding how different creatures interacted. 'He didn't live a very long life but in the short time he had, he really made the most of his time,' he said. 'He had his whole ahead of him,' Mr Hill said of his son, who he described as 'very passionate' about the practice of aquaculture. The grieving father believes more needs to be done on what to do when a carbon monoxide alarm sounds. 'It should be made really clear to people what to do in these circumstances,' he added,' 'I don't think people do know what to do when [alarms] go off.' Now, almost 10 years after his death, Jason Pegg - area coroner for Hampshire, Southampton, and Portsmouth - delivered an accidental death conclusion, but said he will raise a prevention of future deaths report into the use of such devices. Addressing Mr and Mrs Hill, the coroner said: 'You are clearly very proud parents of Tom, who in his 18 years, as you say, made the most of his life. 'It's desperately sad that Tom had future plans with his aquaculture degree, he had a girlfriend, loving parents. 'At the time of his death, he was enjoying some time up in Scotland in a remote, idyllic cottage with his girlfriend and her family.' The coroner referred to the LPG heaters in the bathroom and 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 for that heater. 'In addition, there was no ventilation. The windows had been painted shut and could not be opened.' Mr Pegg also said there 'damage to the heater' which 'exacerbated' the combustion of the gas and the rate at which it was emitted. He concluded that Tom inhaled a 'fatal quantity' of this gas while he prepared for his bath. The coroner said he will issue a prevention of future deaths report relating to the warning on the heater. '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,' Mr Pegg told the inquest. '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.'
BBC News
02-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Gas heater warning at inquest on student's death
A coroner has warned of the dangers of gas heaters at an inquest into a student's death from carbon monoxide poisoning at a holiday cottage in Hill, 18, from Hampshire, died while staying at Glenmark Cottage near Tarfside with the family of his girlfriend Charlotte Beard in October 2015.A previous investigation found that cracks in a bathroom heater led to it producing carbon monoxide at dangerous Jason Pegg recorded a conclusion of accidental death and said he would prepare a preventing future deaths report about the lack of warnings on liquid petroleum gas (LPG) heaters. He said a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found the LPG cabinet heater should not have been used in a room as small as the bathroom, which had no ventilation because the windows had been painted Pegg added that damage to the heater was also a "crucial factor".He said: "The primary feature from the HSE is the heater should not be used in such a confined place."Mr Hill collapsed and died 11 days after the holiday home operator was told about a previous tenant becoming inquest, which was held in Winchester, heard that a fatal accident inquiry (FAI) was also held in Scotland in 2023 into Mr Hill's FAI said external reasonable precautions could have been taken by the firm that could have avoided Mr Hill's owners Burghill Farms and Piers Le Cheminant, who sub-let the property to holidaymakers, were prosecuted for health and safety breaches in 2021, with the farm being fined £120,000 and Le Cheminant being fined £2, Pegg added: "My concern is that in rental cottages and some tented properties, there are going to be heaters of this nature in rooms that are too small which does raise a concern for future deaths." Charlotte Beard's father, Mark Beard, told the inquest that a carbon monoxide alarm in the kitchen had gone off on the evening of 27 October and he had switched off all appliances in that room and opened the said he had not realised that the cause of the carbon monoxide leak was a liquid petroleum gas (LPG) cabinet heater in the Beard said: "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 said he was upstairs when he heard his daughter getting upset at being unable to get a response from Mr Hill, who was in the locked said his son then used a wood axe to break open the door and they found Mr Hill by the bath which was still running and flowing into the Beard, an engineer, said there were no instructions or warnings attached to the cabinet heater, although there was a warning inside which was only visible when the canisters were after the hearing, Mr Hill's father Jerry called for similar LPG heaters to be banned and for mandatory warnings and advice to be placed in rental said: "We think people aren't really aware of the dangers of carbon monoxide and what to do when an alarm goes off."
The Sun
01-05-2025
- General
- The Sun
I risked jail by writing illegal WW2 diary – now at age 99 I want to share my secrets after hiding it for 80-years
FORCES fighting in World War Two knew the rules: Anyone who kept a diary risked being be jailed. But now, at the age of 99½, ex- Royal Marine Tom Hill has finally decided to reveal his secret wartime journal. 7 7 7 Father-of-two Tom showed The Sun the tiny booklet that he has kept hidden for 80 years. It records the horrors and hilarity of war. As the anniversary of VE Day — when war ended in Europe — approaches, Tom says: 'I knew if I was caught with it I'd have ended up in jail. 'But I went to so many places and I knew if I didn't write them all down I'd forget where I'd been. 'I kept it hidden with my medical kit in a front leg pocket. Thankfully, the medical kit wasn't ever inspected so I got away with it.' But what a tale the notebook, only slightly bigger than a credit card, has to tell. It goes from the beaches of Normandy, where Tom spent 16 days under fire before his landing craft was sunk, to the Far East and Australia. He was in the Panama Canal when VE Day was declared on May 8, 1945. His delighted last entry on May 30 says simply: 'UK — Here I come!' Despite working as a tool setter — a protected job that meant he would never have to fight — Tom volunteered to join the Royal Marines, the only regiment that would take 17-year-olds, and he became a landing craft Coxswain. I went to so many places and knew if I didn't write them down I'd forget. I hid the diary in my medical kit and thankfully I got away with it Tom At his home in Birmingham, he says: 'I wanted to do my bit for my country, especially after witnessing Coventry Road being bombed and seeing first-hand how we were being targeted by the Germans.' WW2 Pilot Joe Peterburs who survived being shot down returns to skies Here, he reflects on some of the entries from his first-hand account of history . . . JUNE 1943: After six weeks training in Portsmouth, Tom travels to Scotland to join the former merchant ship Empire Battleaxe, which was home to 90 marines. JUNE 4, 1944: Back in Portsmouth, Tom ferries troops out to the Battleaxe at anchor in the Solent. He says: 'We didn't know of the plan for the D-Day landings in France. 'The first we knew of it was seeing troops playing with foreign money on board the ship. We hadn't been told a thing!' JUNE 6, 1944: After being held back 24 hours due to bad weather, Tom arrives off Normandy. He was in the four-man crew of an LCA landing craft, navigating eight miles through choppy waters, taking 35 troops at a time across from the ship to Sword Beach. He says: 'The sights we saw going back and forth were terrible, just awful, ships being sunk and injured troops in the water, but we had to keep going. 'Shells were going over our heads, troops were being shot at. By night all hell seemed to break loose and we were in the crossfire. 'Either side of us I could see LCAs with their doors blown off. The sergeant on another LCA signalled to me that he had one engine and couldn't fire the other. 'He asked me to move around and take a look. 'I could see a body of one of our troops was wrapped round the propeller shaft rendering it unusable.' For 16 days Tom and his crew ferried in hundreds of troops and supplies to the beaches before being used to deliver mail. On one mail run they came across a ship where a shell had gone through a hatch, killing every soldier onboard. Tom recalls: 'There were two lads sharing a flagon of rum while they filled bags with body parts from down below.' JUNE 22, 1944: On day 16, the landing craft is hit by a storm and sunk. Tom says: 'We abandoned ship and swam together to the nearest boat, which was an American tugboat. 'The captain told us they were returning to the USA and asked if we wanted to go with them. If I drank one rum I must have had two or three pints of it. I've never ever been drunk since then. After grot time, where we spent time with pals, I was tied in my hammock from 11 o'clock until 4 o'clock. The lads thought it was hilarious Tom 'While the idea of a new life far from the noise of D-Day was an attractive thought, we got aboard a British ship and were given five days survivor's leave.' He then rejoined HMS Battleaxe on an 11-month mission, attached to the American 7th Fleet, all over the Pacific, from Samoa to Sydney. NOVEMBER 25, 1944: My 19th birthday, in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea. A day I will never forget. Tom says: 'If I drank one rum I must have had two or three pints of it. I've never ever been drunk since then. After grot time, where we spent time with pals, I was tied in my hammock from 11 o'clock until 4 o'clock. 'The lads thought it was hilarious.' Later, a prisoner of war became seriously ill and Tom had to ferry a doctor from an American ship to treat him. He says: 'I got alongside and shouted for them to throw a line down. I was greeted with the response, 'Sorry pal, I haven't got a pen or paper'. 'It made me really cross that I had to sit in the water for a long time waiting for a rope while we had a really sick POW.' 7 MARCH 19, 1945: Sydney. Tom says: 'Water was always in short supply so we'd strip off and shower in the rain. We had a detachment arrive of six nurses who were all on deck when it started raining. 'A Tannoy announcement reminded us there were females on board and not to strip off and shower. 'One of the nurses piped up, 'Don't worry, lads. We've seen it all before'. MAY 8, 1945: Panama Canal. Tom says: 'VE Day didn't matter much to me. By then, D-Day and France felt like it was far away. 'But despite the end of it all in Europe, the campaign in the Pacific and Japan was still going on.' MAY 30, 1945: New York. UK here we come. Tom says: 'We got back into Portsmouth and were given ten days leave. Our commanding officer told us to make the most of it as afterwards we would be heading back to the Philippines. I remember feeling like it was really unfair. We'd been everywhere.' Eighty years later, retired school caretaker Tom carries survivor's guilt that he made it home when he watched so many others perish. On Thursday, Tom will be attending a Royal British Legion VE Day party with dozens of World War Two veterans at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffs. He says: 'I'm one of the lucky ones, I'm still here. What I saw on D-Day and in the Pacific will always stay with me. 'So many good men I served with didn't get to see the world in peace. 'I think of them all often and will do so again on VE Day.' 7 7 Lotto love at garden WHEN a therapy garden wanted to build a new path for veterans in wheelchairs, a group of Lottery winners worth £115million stepped in to help. Veterans' Growth, near Battle, East Sussex, is a seven-acre site set up by injured Afghan and Iraq veteran Staff Sergeant Jason Stevens, 44. Backed by National Lottery funding, it is a place where ex-servicemen and women can tend plants as therapy. Jason planned the path in honour of VE Day 80 – and among those who offered to help were Neil Trotter, who won £108million on the Lottery in 2014. He found the work relatively easy – as he now manages his own estate of 500 acres, which includes woods, lakes and wild flower meadows. Sharon Hall, 58, of Havant, Hants, was a Royal Navy master-at-arms when she won £1million on a Bullion scratchcard in 2004. She and husband John, 61, collected their cheque onboard HMS Victory. Sharon spent the morning working in the potting shed, while John helped put hardcore on to the path. Mum-of-two Sharon says: 'Being a veteran, coming here means a huge amount. 'I've served with people who've been injured and have suffered PTSD. 'Some of them are floundering, so to come to somewhere like this where you can feel the peace around is so restful. I spent the morning in the potting shed and it's just so therapeutic. 'It's so nice to give something back and to know that people can come here and get some relief from the torment that they might be suffering.'
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Vulcan Materials reports 5.6% increase in Q1 2025 total revenues
Vulcan Materials Company, a US-based supplier of construction aggregates, has reported total revenues of $1.63bn in the first quarter (Q1) ended 31 March 2025, an increase of 5.6% compared to Q1 2024. Net earnings attributable to the company were $129m in Q1 2025, compared to $103m in Q1 2024. The company's gross profit was reported to be $365m in the first quarter of 2025, as against $305m in Q1 2024. Vulcan Materials chair and CEO Tom Hill said: "The combination of our aggregates-led business and our consistent focus on our Vulcan Way of Selling and Vulcan Way of Operating disciplines resulted in strong earnings growth and margin expansion in the first quarter. 'Adjusted EBITDA [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation] increased 27%, and adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 420 basis points over the prior year. Aggregates cash gross profit per ton improved 20% with widespread improvements across our footprint. Our commercial and operational execution support our full-year outlook to deliver another year of earnings growth in 2025." The company's aggregates segment saw an 18% increase in gross profit to $357m, equivalent to $7.48 per ton, with a gross profit margin expansion of 320 basis points to 26.7%. Cash gross profit per ton increased 20% to $10.63 per ton, owing to geographically widespread pricing growth and ongoing improvement in operational efficiencies. The asphalt and concrete segments also reported positive results. The asphalt segment's gross profit was $5m, with a 24% improvement in cash gross profit of $17m over the same quarter of the previous year. The concrete segment's gross profit stood at $3m, with cash gross profit at $19m. Selling, administrative, and general expenses were reported at $138m in Q1 2025 as against $130m in Q1 2024. Vulcan Materials' capital allocation included $105m spent on maintenance and growth projects in the first quarter, and the company anticipates full-year expenditure of $750m to $800m. The company also returned $104m to shareholders via $66m of dividends and $38m of stock repurchases and redeemed its 2025 notes using $400m of cash on hand. Commenting on the outlook, Hill said: "Our execution in the first quarter was strong, and we reiterate our full-year outlook to deliver $2.35 to $2.55bn of adjusted EBITDA. We continue to monitor the impact on overall economic activity from the uncertainty surrounding trade policy and the trajectory of interest rates. "As always, we are focused on the things we can control. Our continued execution of our strategic disciplines has and will continue to lead to attractive cash generation and value creation for our shareholders regardless of external headwinds." "Vulcan Materials reports 5.6% increase in Q1 2025 total revenues" was originally created and published by World Construction Network, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
