FUMES FROM CAR.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 133, 7 June 1937, Page 3

FUMES FROM CAR.

CAUSE OF DEATH AT HOWICK. FATALITY IN GARAGE. Mr. Harry Beckett, a retired farmer, aged <13 years, living at Shelly Park, Howick, who inet his ueatli in an unusual manner on Friday afternoon, was accidentally poisoned by carbon monoxide fumes from a motor car to which he was making adjustments in a small enclosed garage. At an inquest held before Mr. F. K. Hunt, S.M., the evidence was to the effect that on Friday morning Mr. Beckett, who made a hobby of attending to his motor car, had mentioned that the car's exhaust pipe was loose. Later in the day his wife and son, on returning from a. visit to a nearbv relative's home, did not see Mr. Beckett about the house, and went to the garage to look for him. The doors of the garage were closed, but the car engine was running, jind on opening the garage doors the searchers saw Mr. Beckett's body lying on the ground at the rear of the car, and remarked on the presence of benzine fumes. Mr. Beckett apparently had been overcome by the fumes while tightening up the exhaust pips while the engine was running, for there was a spanner by his side and a nut on the exhaust bore marks of recent contact with that particular spanner. Mr. Beckett's head was lying within two feet of the exhaust. Attempts at resuscitation by wife and son, as well as by Dr. B. Armstrong, who was sum moned at once, failed.

lhe doctor stated that the appearance of Mr. Beckett's skin, as well as the circumstances, were consistent with carbon monoxide poisoning, and the coroner's finding was that death was due to accidentally inhaling carbon monoxide fumes.