A MOTHER has blasted engineers after gas was left leaking next to her babies' bedroom.

Preston office worker Beryl Spore had a service carried out on her six-year-old boiler, but noticed something was wrong when the hot water didn't come on after the engineers had left.

The electric on the boiler had not been switched back on, so she turned it on and a few hours later went to bath 15-month-old twin boys, Benjamin and Lucas.

At the top of the stairs Beryl was met by an overwhelming smell of gas.

Now she is calling for an urgent review into the way boilers are serviced to prevent such an incident happening again.

Beryl, 36, said: "I couldn't believe the smell, it was horrendous and was making me panic. The boys were screaming.

"I am angry because my babies could have been in bed while the gas was left leaking."

Beryl, who works as a typesetter, contacted gas pipeline company Transco immediately who told her to open all windows and switch off the supply. An engineer from company visited the house within an hour and said the gas was leaking from the boiler.

Beryl, of Lancaster Close, Adlington, near Chorley, then contacted British Gas who told her they would be out in five hours to fix the boiler.

"I dread to think what could have happened if I had put the boys to bed and they were left to inhale all that gas."

A spokesman for British Gas said: "There was a minute leak of gas and we did everything we could to get it repaired as soon as possible. Our service engineer did an annual service and checked the boiler over and did the pressure checks to make sure everything was running through the boiler properly. The engineer went away thinking it was in good working order. The boiler should have been switched back on. We apologise for any inconvenience."