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Last year Susan and Perry Carthew moved with their two young children, 3-year-old-Emma and baby Nicholas to a new home in Surrey. All was wonderful for the first few weeks - then on 4th March their lives changed. Their boiler was faulty, and the family were lucky to survive carbon monoxide poisoning...

That morning in March Susan woke up early, feeling very unwell. In the bath she realised she was about to pass out, and managed to get herself out of the bathtub, and into the bedroom to tell her husband. Perry remembers, "She managed to crawl into bed and began thrashing around then went completely still, her eyes wild and staring." Thinking she'd had a fit, Perry rang the Emergency Services. He managed to give their address and then he too collapsed.

Half an hour later, coming round in intensive care, Susan first thought was "On no, I'm seriously ill - I've let my family down," Perry was in the next bed and as he came round, a nurse was saying to them "Carbon monoxide poisoning." They realised the boiler must have been faulty, even though it had been given an official all clear. A policeman standing in front of the bed was cradling Nicholas. But Perry couldn't see his daughter. It was a terrifying moment, "Coming out of a daze, my whole body screamed, 'Where's Emma?' I felt that I was dying then more than the incident before ..." Emma, in the bed the other side of her Susan, broke the paralysing fear with as scream as the nurses attached a line to her.

The family returned to their house 2 or 3 days later. "We had to get back as soon as possible, or we'd never go back at all." Glad to be alive, the family have by no means got over the awful realisation of how close they were to death. Unable to afford to move from the house, Susan's reaction was to re-decorate the house, "We've tried to wipe way traces of the old house, and create a new one."

However, the couple's relationship was severely affected by the incident. Perry was angry and depressed about what had happened, and six months after the trauma, Susan says, "It was the divorce courts, or the doctor ... we opted for the doctor." The couple saw a counsellor, but Perry still feels very emotional about what happened, "Counselling worked to a certain extent - but it never goes away, really. I can talk about it now without breaking down every time." Perry feels his personality has changed, "I used to have absolute patience with children, but now I just snap. But it also makes you realise how much people care - the Emergency Services were wonderful." Susan believes she's changed for the better, "After the original depression, I have a new lease of life, more happy and content, not phased by little things any more, and I now I have a good sense of balance in my life."

The Health and Saftey Executive did take legal action on the couple's behalf, against the person who had inspected and passed the boiler as safe. The Carthews were awarded Β£7000.

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