Gregson Mathe
Back in December, tragedy struck as two friends sat and chatted (assuming) along a road in the UK and succumbed to carbon monoxide poisoning. The way it happened, however, was not known until today and it is a reminder to us all to be careful even when not on the road.
Tom Putt and Nikki Willis were 20 and 23 years old respectively. Tom drove a Ford Fiesta ST that he had modified himself. Tom was an engineering apprentice with Ford so he wasn’t inexperienced in the modding world. Strangely though, it was a modification that unfortunately and tragically killed the two youths.
According to reports, Putt and Willis were found at 10:30 in the morning after being noticed at 4:30 that same morning with the car running. As with many enthusiasts Putt has modified his ST for more power. The mods that were performed were a catalytic converter delete (or removal) as well as vents cut into the front hood of the car near the windshield. You can see the one vent in the picture above.
Apparently the modification was not done properly and there was a small gap between where the exhaust met the engine allowing deadly amounts of exhaust fumes and carbon monoxide out. While sitting in the car, the two apparently passed out from the fumes and met their sad end. It was only known after the fact and a full investigation that the amount of carbon monoxide gas present in the car’s cabin was found to be 1000 times the normal amount.
Forgive the cheesiness of the video below, but it’s an excellent representation of how fast carbon dioxide builds up and then dissipates when in open air.
Sadly, Putt and Willis did not make it, but this is a reminder to all that when you modify your car to check it 5 times over to make sure there are no leaks of any kind. Hopefully this won’t become a scary trend.
(Source: The Telegraph)
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