Some 200 black and yellow balloons soared high into the skies above Castle Hill to launch a new safety campaign.
And the coming together of national gas distributors to fight carbon monoxide poisoning was all thanks to a Huddersfield mum.
Stacey Rodgers was behind the eye-catching event, Dominic’s Day, created to raise awareness of the dangers of the gas and to celebrate what would have been the 21st birthday of her son, Dominic.
Dominic was only 10 when he was poisoned by the gas as he slept in 2004.
It was the second balloon release of the day for Stacey, who had travelled from Birmingham, where she was promoting the event and encouraging the installation of carbon monoxide alarms with gas companies Northern Gas Network, National Grid and Scottish Gas.
She encouraged the three to unite on the issue, which still leads to hundreds of serious poisoning cases each year.
Stacey, who campaigns through the Dominic Rodgers Trust, said: “I came up with the idea for the day when I was thinking about how to celebrate Dominic’s birthday, which was on April 20.
“I thought that it would be great to bring gas providers together to highlight that the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning still exist.
“The amount of support that we have had has been great and I would like to thank them.
“The campaign is going from strength to strength and I believe that even if we just encourage a few people to install a carbon monoxide detector it could make all the difference.
“I don’t want anyone to go through what I have been through with Dominic.
“Following on from this event we hope to do something bigger together next year.”
The event follows a request by charity Carbon Monoxide and Gas Safety Society to issue prime-time TV warnings on carbon monoxide in the UK.
Carbon monoxide is an odourless and colourless gas that can kill within minutes of leaking from faulty appliances in buildings.
As well as buying a detector, people should be aware of the signs of poisoning, which include dizziness, nausea, tiredness and confusion, stomach pain and being short of breath.
Northern Gas Network head of customer experience, Eileen Brown, said: “Whilst we continually campaign on this issue we want to help promote it as much as we can through events such as this.
“We have been giving away stationery and advice to residents and are now focusing on going into community forums and residents’ associations to push the message out there.
For more information about the Dominic Rodgers Trust see the website at www.dominicrodgers.org.uk/
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