A LEADING carbon monoxide awareness campaigner from Teesside is urging people to stay safe this winter.

Louise Baldock, 48, of Stockton, became a campaigner on the issue after her fiancé died in a poisoning accident in 1999.

She urged people to make sure their appliances were safety checked and chimneys swept ahead of the winter.

Ms Baldock, who is also the Labour candidate for Stockton South in the 2015 General Election, said: “Michael was killed by fumes from a blocked flue leading from his Parkray stove.

"Because he was burning smokeless fuel there was no warning that there was anything wrong and the gas built up in his sitting room over a couple of days.

"He became sick and dizzy but thought he had flu so lay on the sofa with his duvet, ironically in the most dangerous of places. Michael didn’t know that he should have had his flue regularly checked. I don’t want other people to make that fatal mistake.

“At this time of year, when people are starting to fire up their central heating or use their open fireplaces or stoves, it is important that people take important safety measures. 

“I urge home owners and tenants to ensure that their appliances have been serviced and just as importantly that their chimneys or flues have been swept before they begin to heat their homes this winter. They should also buy themselves an alarm which I consider to be just as important as a smoke detector.”

Michael Price was aged 45 and living in Ludlow when he died in January 1999