UK woman dies after accidentally trapping herself in airing cupboard

A UK woman, Elizabeth Isherwood (60) died after accidentally trapping herself in an airing cupboard. The inside door knob broke when she tried to get out.

The ex-police woman from Wolverhampton, known as Mary, was alone on the first night of a stay at a family timeshare in Plas Hlagarth holiday complex near Machynlleth, Wales. She allegedly awoke during the night to go to the bathroom.

Returning to her bed she mistook the airing  cupboard door for the bedroom door. The door closed behind her and when she attempted to open it the knob broke off.

In a desperate attempt to try and knock down the door, she used pipework and shelves she wrenched off the walls.

The 60-year-old  tried for 24 hours to escape from the small cupboard, but was soaked by water from the broken pipes and died from exhaustion and hypothermia, an inquest court heard.

Her naked body was found in the cupboard a week later by maintenance men sent to investigate a leak.

Other guests put the knocking sounds down to building work according to the evidence.

The timeshare had recently been sold, but staff at the complex gave Mary vouchers for one last stay, her family said.

She had gone for a swim after she arrived and hadn’t even unpacked before going to sleep.

The coroner ruled her cause of death was failure of the inside knob in the airing cupboard door.

– AFP