KENT Police have released a picture of the mother and daughter who died from carbon monoxide poisoning at her home in Stone Street, Tunbridge Wells.

The double fatality led to a police warning that people should have their chimneys checked on a regular basis.

Police officers discovered the bodies of 61-year-old Marion Stillwell and her 98-year-old mother, Florence Holeman, on Thursday of last week.

Det Sgt Andrea Richards said later that debris had built up in the chimney of the home and there was no ventilation in the room.

Police said the pair had not been seen for two days before they were found. A post mortem confirmed that the deaths were due to carbon monoxide poisoning.

Det Sgt Richards added: "We were able to determine that the circumstances of these tragic deaths was not suspicious.

"Our inquiry into the incident has established that the carbon monoxide poisoning appears to have come about because of build up of soot and fly-ash debris in the chimney and no ventilation in the room serving the heating appliance."

It appears that the debris build-up was a through a combination of inadequate maintenance on the throat plate/damper plate of the solid fuel room heater (a back boiler model) and lack of chimney sweeping. According to manufacturers’ instructions damper plates should be normally be cleaned every four weeks and the advice of the National Association of Chimney Sweeps is that chimneys should be at least once a year.

Martin Glynn, president of the National Association of Chimney Sweeps said: "It is mind-boggling to think that just one shovel of soot not being moved can mean that people die.

"People don’t always realise that any fossil fuel can cause carbon monoxide poisoning that’s why it’s really important to understand what maintenance your system needs and make sure you follow the instructions carefully. If you’re not sure what to do then contact the manufacturer, Solid Fuel Advisory Service or National Association of Chimney Sweeps."

He added: "Chimneys should be swept every year by a member of the National Association of Chimney Sweeps who can be contacted on a free-phone number 0800 833 464

"They will also issue an appropriate certification of chimney sweeping."