Murphy Bed Danger
Two sisters died after folding bed collapsed entombing them for four days
Two elderly sisters were killed when their folding bed collapsed while they were on holiday in Spain, an inquest has heard.
Mildred Bowman, 62, and Alice Wardle, 68, were on holiday in Benidorm but became entombed under the collapsed bed for four days. The pair suffocated to death in August 2005.
A coroner ruled that the deaths could and should have been avoidable, after hearing evidence the bed had not been fitted properly.
Investigators found that the bed was not lowered correctly by the sisters, causing the base to be tilted instead of horizontal with the bed unit on the wall. But the sisters had not been told how to lower it properly and there were no instructions in the room.
Screws and plugs on the bed’s wall storage unit were not fitted correctly, Gateshead Coroner Terence Carney heard. These gave way, causing the unit to collapse on top of the sisters as they slept.
Mr Carney said the fact the screws were the wrong size for the wall plugs was a critical issue in the death of the sisters.