Family of five poisoned by barbecue on camping trip in Cornwall
Stock photo: PA
A family of five were rescued from their tent and treated in hospital after being overcome by barbecue fumes while camping in Cornwall.
Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service said the two adults and three children, part of the same family according to reports, were taken to the Royal Cornwall Hospital after being found at the Trevella Caravan Park at Crantock, near Newquay, shortly after midnight.
Firefighters said a barbecue that was found inside their tent was believed to be the cause of the poisoning.
Two men from a neighbouring tent helped to rescue the family.
One of the men, Tony Woodward, from Nottingham, told the BBC: 'I heard a bit of a commotion. We didn't quite know what was going on.
'The father was trying to take his family out one by one. But then he didn't have enough strength as the carbon monoxide took hold.
'One of his daughters was unconscious in the far side of the tent. We had to physically carry her out.'
Shaun Taylor, the watch manager at Newquay Fire Station, said: 'We found that the occupants of the next tent had helped in rescuing the family from the tent.
'We discovered they had a lit barbecue inside the tent. Any item that produces heat or vapours can cause carbon monoxide poisoning. That was our concern.
'If the dad hadn't woken up and the people in the next tent hadn't got the people out we would have been looking at a very sad and serious situation this morning.'
Barry Templeton, the general manager at the camping park, confirmed the family arrived back at the site safe and well after being treated in hospital.
He said the site had never experienced such a scare, and would be putting up a new sign in response to the incident.
'The well-being of people at Trevella is our concern. I think our first response would be to put a warning notice in the welcome pack highlighting the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning.'
A similar incident in the New Forest ended in tragedy when a man celebrating his 50th birthday with a camping trip died after being overcome by fumes from a barbecue he lit to warm up his tent.
