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Ummay Alam was seven months pregnant when she went for a routine checkup with her midwife.

While carrying out the standard ‘blow test’, which is designed to detect whether carbon monoxide (also known as CO) is present in a patient, Ummay was shocked and alarmed when the reading came back as level 6 – a red flag that the patient is at risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.

She explains: “I couldn’t believe it. At my previous midwife appointments, my results had always been level 1. Up to level 3 is fine, anything between 4 and 9 is cause for concern, and anything above 9 is considered dangerous. To be at level 6 was a shock as we get our boiler serviced every year and the only other gas appliance in the house is a cooker.”

Following advice from her midwife, Ummay’s husband contacted their local gas distribution network, Northern Gas Networks, who came out the same day to carry out a full assessment on the property. The Gas safe registered engineer confirmed that the gas cooker was omitting CO.

Ummay adds: “Stupidly we didn’t have a carbon monoxide alarm fitted in the house as we never thought things like this happened. It’s been a real wake up call. Our cooker is only five years old; we bought it when we moved into the house, but looking back we had had problems with it cutting out for the past year or so and even had engineers out to look at it who didn’t spot any signs. We didn’t think anything of it.

“I was kind of aware of the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning, but I’d never have put two and two together as I was heavily pregnant at the time and a lot of the symptoms – nausea, fatigue, headaches – are all similar. I am so glad the midwife picked it up.”

Being pregnant meant Ummay was eligible for the Priority Services Register and qualified to have her cooker repaired with new parts, free of charge. “Saving that money was really helpful with an impending newborn, and Northern Gas Networks came to the rescue within just a few days.”

Ummay and husband Mishbah welcomed their first child, daughter Yaseerah, in September 2024. Both mum and baby are healthy and doing well.

A local gas company has reported that it was called out to 94 properties in Leeds during the first three months of this year, to respond to confirmed or suspected cases of carbon monoxide (CO) following calls to the National Gas Emergency helpline. 289 visits were made to properties in Yorkshire between January to March 2025.

One of those visits was to  Kris Dillon, a busy dad of three young children from Leeds. When a beeping carbon monoxide alarm kept going off in his home at the beginning of the year, he was forced to take action.

“Our boiler is situated in an internal garage above my eight-year-old son’s bedroom.” Kris explains. “My wife called me one day to explain that the carbon monoxide alarm that we have in the garage was randomly beeping. I just thought it was the batteries, so asked her to replace it with new ones and see if it stopped. When she called back to say it was still beeping and had been for the past 20 minutes, we googled what to do and called the National Gas Emergency helpline.

“An engineer from Northern Gas Networks arrived within 20 minutes of us making the call. They did a gas reading and confirmed that carbon monoxide was present in the room and that the reading was quite high. I was shocked.”

The emergency response engineer then capped the gas in Kris’s home to make it safe until a Gas Safe registered engineer could come out to fix the problem.

“NGN offered us electric heaters and a stove while our gas was off, and extra blankets to keep warm. The following day, someone came to service the boiler and confirmed that carbon monoxide was no longer leaking from it, reassuring us by taking several further readings.”

Kris and wife Carly had had the same boiler in place since buying their home seven years ago. “It was the original boiler that was in there when we bought the house but it isn’t particularly old and it’s a reputable brand. We’d had it serviced a few times, but it was due another service last year and we forgot. You just put these things to the back of your mind and think it won’t happen to you. This was a wake-up call.”

Kris’s son, whose bedroom is above the garage, had complained of feeling unwell the night before the CO alarm started beeping. “Looking back, we wonder if that was down to the gas being emitted and we didn’t know. It’s scary to think what could’ve happened if we hadn’t had an alarm in there.”

Kris and Carly have since bought more carbon monoxide alarms and put them on every floor of the house on NGN’s advice and scheduled in reminders for an annual boiler service and chimney sweep. “It’s just not worth the risk. Please check your appliances and get a CO alarm. It could save your life.”

For more tips to stay safe from the dangers of carbon monoxide, visit www.northerngasnetworks.co.uk/cohero.

Carbon monoxide poisoning kills around 60 people and hospitalises 4,000 every year in the UK. Recent research conducted by NGN revealed that only 37 percent of people in the NGN regions (Yorkshire, Cumbria, and the North East) have a working CO alarm in their property, and only 24 percent regularly test it. 19 percent said they would do nothing if they heard their CO alarm beeping, while nine percent admit they’ve never had their boiler serviced.

Eileen Brown, Director of Customer Experience at Northern Gas Networks, said: “It’s worrying how many people we’ve had to visit in Leeds so far this year because of suspected carbon monoxide poisoning. Similar to a smoke alarm, CO alarms are activated when CO is detected in the air and will beep and flash to alert you of the danger. They’re small and easy to install, and you should have at least one on each floor. If you have a gas fire, log burner or open fire, it’s a good idea to have one in the room it’s in, too.”

Carbon monoxide is a poisonous, colourless and odourless gas that is produced when carbon fuels are burnt. It can leak from incorrectly fitted, badly repaired or poorly maintained gas appliances, as well as flues, chimneys and blocked vents. You can’t see or smell it, so you can’t detect it if it begins to build up in your home, and if you breathe it in, it can make you seriously ill.

The signs of CO poisoning include headaches, dizziness, nausea, breathlessness, collapse or loss of consciousness. If you think you may have carbon monoxide poisoning, immediately turn off the appliance you think may be causing it, open windows and doors, leave the building and seek urgent medical advice. You must also call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999 and      an engineer will come straight out to investigate and make the situation safe. This line is in operation 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Northern Gas Networks (NGN), the gas distributor for the North of England, is to carry out essential work in Hartlepool to replace the ageing metal pipework with new, more durable plastic pipes.

This work will ensure the continued safe and reliable supply of gas to customers in Hartlepool, keeping homes and businesses safe, warm and connected.

The latest phase of the project, which is expected to last for around 2 weeks, has been planned in collaboration with Hartlepool Borough Council. So that engineers can carry out the work safely and efficiently, and to protect the public, some traffic management measures will be put in place.

From Monday 28 April, Stockton Road will be closed between the junction of the A689 and Loyalty Road. One lane of the A689 will also be closed during this 2 week period.

Steven Storey, Site Manager at Northern Gas Networks, said: “We would like to apologise in advance for any inconvenience caused during these essential works. However, it’s vital we complete them in order to continue to maintain a safe and reliable gas supply to the residents of Hartlepool.”

For further information about the work please contact NGN’s Customer Care Team on 0800 040 7766 or email: customercare@northerngas.co.uk.

Anyone that smells gas or suspects carbon monoxide should call the National Gas Emergency Service immediately on 0800 111 999. This line is in operation 24-hours a day, seven days a week.

Northern Gas Networks (NGN), the gas distributor for the North of England, is to carry out essential work in Harrogate to replace the ageing metal pipework with new, more durable plastic pipes.

This work will ensure the continued safe and reliable supply of gas to customers in Harrogate, keeping homes and businesses safe, warm and connected.

The project, which is expected to last until around mid September, has been planned in collaboration with North Yorkshire Council. So that engineers can carry out the work safely and efficiently, and to protect the public, some temporary traffic management measures will be put in place.

Work will begin on Monday 14 April, and from Monday 12 May temporary traffic lights will be in place on Hookstone Drive – between Oatlands Drive and Wetherby Road – until the end of the work.

Mark Mawhood, Operations Manager at Northern Gas Networks, said: “We would like to apologise in advance for any inconvenience caused during these essential works. However, it’s vital we complete them in order to continue to maintain a safe and reliable gas supply to the residents of Harrogate.”

For further information about the work please contact NGN’s Customer Care Team on 0800 040 7766 or email: customercare@northerngas.co.uk.

Anyone that smells gas or suspects carbon monoxide should call the National Gas Emergency Service immediately on 0800 111 999. This line is in operation 24-hours a day, seven days a week.

Northern Gas Networks (NGN), the gas distributor for the North of England, is to carry out essential work in Thirsk to replace the ageing metal pipework with new, more durable plastic pipes.

This work will ensure the continued safe and reliable supply of gas to customers in Thirsk, keeping homes and businesses safe, warm and connected.

The project, which is expected to last around 5 weeks, has been planned in collaboration with North Yorkshire Council. So that engineers can carry out the work safely and efficiently, and to protect the public, some temporary traffic management measures will be put in place.

From Monday 7 April, temporary traffic lights will be in place at the junction of Danum Avenue and Topcliffe Road/B1448. As the work continues, these lights will move south along Topcliffe Road/B1448, away from the town centre.

Dave Smales, Site Manager at Northern Gas Networks, said: “We would like to apologise in advance for any inconvenience caused during these essential works. However, it’s vital we complete them in order to continue to maintain a safe and reliable gas supply to the residents of Thirsk.

“We have worked very closely with North Yorkshire Council to minimise disruption for this work, which is why we have been able to start it during the Easter school holidays.”

For further information about the work please contact NGN’s Customer Care Team on 0800 040 7766 or email: customercare@northerngas.co.uk.

Anyone that smells gas or suspects carbon monoxide should call the National Gas Emergency Service immediately on 0800 111 999. This line is in operation 24-hours a day, seven days a week.

Northern Gas Networks (NGN), the gas distributor for the North of England, is to carry out essential work in Halifax to replace the ageing metal pipework with new, more durable plastic pipes.

This work will ensure the continued safe and reliable supply of gas to customers in Halifax, keeping homes and businesses safe, warm and connected.

The first phase of the project, which is expected to last until September, has been planned in collaboration with Calderdale Council. So that engineers can carry out the work safely and efficiently, and to protect the public, some temporary traffic management measures will be put in place.

From Monday 7 April, temporary traffic lights will be in place at the junction of Water Lane and Swan Bank Lane. As the work continues, these lights will move east along Hunger Hill and Oxford Road, ending at the junction of Oxford Road and Savile Road.

Chris Green, Business Operations Lead at Northern Gas Networks, said: “We would like to apologise in advance for any inconvenience caused during these essential works. However, it’s vital we complete them in order to continue to maintain a safe and reliable gas supply to the residents of Halifax.”

For further information about the work please contact NGN’s Customer Care Team on 0800 040 7766 or email: customercare@northerngas.co.uk.

Anyone that smells gas or suspects carbon monoxide should call the National Gas Emergency Service immediately on 0800 111 999. This line is in operation 24-hours a day, seven days a week.