A man who lived in a cold, damp and mouldy house did not die because of conditions in the property, a coroner has ruled.
Luke Brooks, 27, from Oldham, died at his home last October from an acute respiratory illness. A postmortem examination found aspergillus, a type of mould, on Brooks’ lung, and aspergillus pneumonia was diagnosed.
His parents, Patricia and James, have blamed mould in the house they shared with Luke.
On Thursday the senior coroner Joanne Kearsley told the Brooks family that disrepairs did not play a part in Luke’s death. She said her findings did not take away from the fact that things needed to be done to their privately rented house.
The inquest in Rochdale heard evidence the property had multiple problems and was cold, damp and mouldy.
Patricia Brooks said that at one point she begged the local council to rehouse the family from their privately rented home. Asked what she told them, she said: “‘For God’s sake, will you please get us out of that house before someone dies.’ And a couple of months later, somebody did.”
The family was not on a waiting list and was advised to continue bidding for social housing.
Before he died, Luke reported symptoms including a sore throat, coughing, vomiting, diarrhoea and a rash, which were taken to be a viral infection.
The discovery of aspergillus on his lung was a reason why the Brooks family were convinced conditions in the house were a factor in Luke’s death.
However, the inquest heard evidence from a consultant medical mycologist, Prof Malcolm Richardson, who said he found “very, very little” evidence of aspergillus in the house. Dr Chris Kosmidis, a consultant in infectious diseases, said he had been unable to find any case where aspergillus pneumonia had been linked to a mouldy home.
Spores of aspergillus are inhaled daily by people but it does not have the ability to cause disease in healthy people. However, Kosmodis said, it can cause disease if a person’s immune system has been severely weakened.
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The inquest heard that aspergillus is a grass eater and generally grows outside, but it can grow on damp clothes and textiles, dust and cannabis.
The inquest was conducted by the Kearsley who last year oversaw the inquest into the death of two-year-old Awaab Ishak. In that case, she concluded that mould in the social housing flat of Awaab’s family caused his death, and that she hoped it would be “a defining moment” for the housing sector. The findings led to resignations at the social housing provider and the government bringing in tougher legislation on mould.
At this week’s inquest Brooks’ mother remembered her son as “happy go lucky” and “funny, witty, intelligent, clever”. He was kind hearted and “would do anything for anyone”, she said.
More details soon …
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