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Woman Ended Up With Chlorine Gas Poisoning After Mixing Household Cleaners

Woman Ended Up With Chlorine Gas Poisoning After Mixing Household Cleaners

She's now warning others to beware

Claire Reid

Claire Reid

A woman who wanted to make sure her kitchen was extra clean almost died from chlorine gas poisoning after mixing three cleaning products.

Mum-of-three Charley Howson combined hot water, bleach, and two concentrated disinfectant products.

However, shortly after mopping Charley, who suffers from muscle-wasting condition, Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, began experiencing extreme chest pains.

She said: "The pain got worse and worse, I thought I was having a heart attack. I've had a collapsed lung before, and it felt a bit like that."

Luckily for Charley, her 15-year-old son Corey was there and after her crying out in pain called for an ambulance.

Corey's quick thinking may have saved Charley's life. Credit: SWNS

Charley continued: "I told him not to, I said I'll be fine, but I was in agony."

When paramedics arrived they found Charley to have dangerously low oxygen levels, so she was rushed into hospital.

Charley said: "Corey was terrified because he thought I was getting ill from my condition again, as I've had periods of six months where I've been in a wheelchair. I was petrified, I didn't know what was happening, and just kept thinking about my kids."

Charley was treated with oxygen and given a chest x-ray, which thankfully came back clear.

She said: "The doctor asked if I had been cleaning, because the paramedics mentioned a strong smell of bleach.

Credit: PA

"He said mixing those chemicals with the hot water had given me chlorine gas poisoning. I was stunned, I couldn't believe it. He said that it happens far more than you'd think.

"He said if my son hadn't phoned for the ambulance when he did that it could have been a lot worse. He's really mature for his age, and I'm so grateful he didn't listen to me when I said I was fine!

"He's made a joke out of it and calls me the 'chlorine gaffe girl' and says I should leave the cleaning to the professionals!

"But it could have been so much worse. I could not be here. It could have killed me."

Charley now needs to wait for more tests to see if breathing in the chlorine gas fumes has caused any permanent damage.

She continued: "I just want to warn people. Everything I used were just normal cleaning products.

"I didn't read the small print on the bottles, but no-one does really, and I just want everyone to make sure they do when they're cleaning."

Featured Image Credit: SWNS