A BODMIN man had a "very lucky escape" after a faulty gas heater pumped out deadly carbon monoxide into his home.
Fire crews from Bodmin were called to the St Georges Crescent property at around 5pm Wednesday last week.
A Lifeline alarm – which is monitored 24 hours a day – activated in the property after detecting traces of carbon monoxide.
Firefighters ventilated the property and the man, thought to be in his fifties and suffering from breathing difficulties, was passed into the care of paramedics.
"The man had a very lucky escape," said group manager Mark Blatchford, from Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service.
"The Lifeline system really did provide a lifeline – had the alarm not been in place, the man could have been seriously ill."
A colourless, odourless and poisonous gas, carbon monoxide is produced by the incomplete burning of carbon-based fuels including gas, oil, wood and coal.
Cornwall Lifeline provides a round-the-clock service for around 12,000 people throughout Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly and parts of Devon.
There are a number of devices that can be wirelessly linked though the lifeline service including smoke and carbon monoxide detectors - for more details and free advice contact Cornwall Lifeline on 01872 224521.