Tent barbecue horror kills teenage girl

A teenage girl has died and her family taken to hospital with suspected carbon monoxide poisoning after they were found unconscious in a tent at a campsite in Shropshire.

Paramedics fought to save the girl, who is believed to be 14, after the alarm was raised at the site in Bucknell, near Ludlow, yesterday.

The girl was camping with her mother, step-father and 11-year-old brother, who were taken to the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.

The tragedy is thought to have been caused by a disposable barbecue, which they had taken into the porch of the tent possibly to keep warm as temperatures plunged to around 2C (36F).

The owners of the site said a barbecue used by the family on Saturday night – the first evening of their bank holiday break – was in the porch of the tent yesterday morning.

Detective Inspector Gavin Kinrade, from West Mercia Police, said the death was unexplained but not suspicious.

Phil Wright, who owns the The Baron at Bucknell campsite with his wife Debra, said the family was part of a larger group made up of the mother's two sisters and their respective partners and children, staying in three separate tents.

Mr Wright said another family member became concerned after nobody awoke and opened the tent to discover the four of them at around 9.45am. He said: "They went into the tent and they were all unconscious. One of the sisters came in and said they needed an ambulance urgently.

"We called the ambulance and we had a doctor staying here who tried to assist. Paramedics were out in five minutes, followed by an ambulance and two air ambulance in the field next to the campsite.

"Within 20 minutes we had a field full of emergency services. They all tried to give CPR for some time but sadly she died. The boy and the mum and step-dad were now conscious but not well.

"It's tragic. No-one has done anything wrong, they've just not realised the dangers of disposable barbecues."

Tearful Mrs Wright said they were devastated by what happened and said their hearts went out to the family involved.

West Midlands Ambulance Service spokeswoman Claire Thomas said several paramedics attended including two Midlands Air Ambulances from Cosford and Strensham, one with a doctor on board.

"Crews arrived to find CPR being carried out on a girl who was in cardiac arrest," she said. "They continued resuscitation efforts in an attempt to restart the girl's heart.

"Sadly, despite their best efforts nothing could be done to save the girl and she was confirmed dead on scene."

She added: "A boy, believed to be 11 years old, was suffering from suspected carbon monoxide poisoning. Crews and the doctor began oxygen therapy and, due to his serious condition, the boy was airlifted to the RSH for emergency treatment. A woman and man were also given oxygen therapy before being taken to the same hospital."

Relatives of the girl, who has not been named, said they had been 'devastated'.

In a statement released by the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital on their behalf, the extended family said: "Our priority as a family is to ensure the three people in hospital get well and are fully recovered. We are devastated by this tragic accident."

A hospital spokeswoman said the three patients were all in a stable condition last night. They are not thought to be from the Shropshire area.