Carbon monoxide poisons diners

The four friends were taken with two other diners to Whipps Cross hospital, where they were kept on full oxygen overnight, all suffering from high levels of carbon monoxide in their blood.

Sue and her partner Richard were the first to feel the effects, shortly after paying the bill at around 8.30pm on Friday, November 14.

Mrs Faithfull said: "My partner went outside as he was feeling ill, and he passed out. I was terrified as I didn't know what was happening at the time. My friend Chris was throwing water over him and trying to revive him.

"I nearly passed out myself, and restaurant staff helped me get outside. I felt really faint, and put my head between my legs. I can't really remember what happened after I started to feel ill."

Chris Pickard, who was also struck by the deadly gas, added: "The ambulance crew took carbon monoxide readings from our blood, and we were all off the scale. If the ambulance had been minutes later, I think there could've been fatalities.

"Richard lost all consciousness and I was really worried for him. This should serve as a warning to people to install detectors as carbon monoxide really is a silent killer."

All were released on Saturday morning apart from Richard Faithfull, who remained the hospital until the evening to be treated with hyperbaric oxygen therapy to pump oxygen back into his body.

Preto, which opened just three weeks before the carbon monoxide leak, reopened on Saturday after gas engineers checked all appliances.

Manager Dean Knight said: "The extractor fan malfunctioned which caused a build-up of carbon monoxide. The restaurant was evacuated, and the next day the fault was rectified and checked and it was given the all-clear.

"It was a brand new installation, and the restaurant had only just been given a complete refurbishment."