Warning: This article contains discussion of suicide which some readers may find distressing.
Dr Philip Nitschke, the inventor of the Sarco Pod, which allows the occupant to take their own life, has spoken about the development of another kind of pod which would enable two people to take their own lives.
His invention was used for the first time in 2024 in Switzerland by a 64-year-old American woman, with several people taken into custody as a result.
Dr Nitschke said the woman pressed the button inside the pod almost immediately, claiming she 'really wanted to die' in the device, which is a chamber that the occupant can fill with nitrogen that renders them unconscious in short order and dead within minutes.
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The device is as controversial as the debate on assisted dying and a person's right to take their own life, but Dr Nitschke has had interest from many about it, including from couples who would like to depart the land of the living together.
A British couple said they wanted to go through the procedure and be the first to use a double suicide pod, saying they wanted to 'die in each other's arms'.
Speaking to the Mail, Dr Nitschke said that 'most of the bits have been printed' and it would not be long before everything was put together and the double Sarco Pod would be created.
He said that the device would be ready in 'a couple of months' and would be large enough for two occupants, with them both having a button they would need to press at the same time to activate it.
If only one of the people inside pressed the button, then it wouldn't work, so it has to be a coordinated and conscious decision from both of the occupants.
He also added that there would be AI features through which occupants could demonstrate they had the mental capacity to understand the decision they were making and be responsible for pressing the button.
Dr Nitschke explained that she hadn't been working during the first use of the pod, and that the American woman had undergone a psychiatric evaluation.
However, even if he says his pod is only a couple of months away from being constructed, it will still have to wait for legal approval in Switzerland.
The last time the pod was used was in that country, and it prompted a lengthy legal investigation into whether it had been intentional homicide, with Switzerland's Interior Minister Elisabeth Baume-Schneider saying the pod was 'not legal' on the day it was used.
Investigators later dropped claims of intentional homicide.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, please don’t suffer alone. Call Samaritans for free on their anonymous 24-hour phone line on 116 123.
Topics: Health
Joe Harker