THE family of a mother and daughter who died on a boat after being overcome by carbon monoxide fumes have criticised the sentence handed to the man responsible.

Gas fitter Matthew Eteson, 42, walked free from court yesterday with a suspended sentence after being found guilty of the manslaughter of his partner Kelly Webster, 36, and Lauren Thornton, 10, on board his boat Arniston which was moored on Windermere.

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On the weekend of April 1 2013 Kelly and Lauren were overcome by toxic fumes as they slept below deck on the boat.

Samlesbury businessman Eteson had soldered an exhaust system to a petrol powered generator which failed, causing fumes to leak into the cabin.

A spokesman for Kelly and Lauren's family said: “The family are extremely disappointed with the sentencing imposed in this case.

"It is completely disproportionate given that two lives have been lost.

"We have lived with the unbearable loss of Kelly and Lauren for over two and a half years.

"Eteson has never apologised nor shown any kind of remorse. The family and friends request privacy at this difficult time.”

On April 1, the Webster family enjoyed an Easter Monday meal at the home of Nia and Alan Webster in Leyland.

In a moving victim impact statement read to the court, Kelly’s mum Nia spoke of the moment the police knocked on their door and broke the news Kelly and Lauren had died.

She said: “I was at home alone with Alan. We were told Kelly and Lauren had died at four o’clock but we weren’t told till 8.50pm.

“I fell to the floor. I was completely numb. Alan was pacing.”

Since the tragic deaths of her daughter and granddaughter, Mrs Webster said she had struggled to sleep and felt anxious.

She said: “Kelly and Lauren have been gone from our lives for around two and a half years and it seems to get worse.

“My anxiety has got worse and I can’t believe they aren’t going to come back. It is like it happened yesterday.”

Mr Webster added: “We will never come to terms with what happened to Kelly and Lauren. We all live with our loss every day and we will never recover from our loss.”

Lauren’s dad, Neil Thornton - also a gas fitter - spoke of his heartache at losing his only child.

He said: “Seeing the generator and the parts fitted to it, Matthew Eteson’s conduct was unforgivable.”

Alistair Webster QC, defending Eteson, said his client had been 'heartbroken, traumatised, remorseful and utterly overwhelmed by the terrible consequences that arose from his work'.

Eteson, now of Appleton Road, Hale, Cheshire, has been diagnosed as suffering from post traumatic stress disorder and depression since the deaths of Kelly and Lauren and Mr Webster said an immediate prison sentence would delay his recovery.

Mr Justice Turner, sentencing at Preston Crown Court, said: “It was a tragic example of a little bit of learning being a dangerous thing.

“Your skills as a gas engineer led you into feeling a false sense of security and you seriously failed to consider the particular dangers of using solder to weld copper joints to release fumes from a petrol generator.”

He said there was no suggestion Eteson took a deliberate risk with Kelly and Lauren’s lives and described Eteson as a hard worker.

But as he handed him a two-year sentence suspended for two years there were gasps and tears from the public gallery as Kelly’s family and friends listened to the sentence.

Speaking after the case, Joanna White, senior crown prosecutor from CPS North West Complex Casework Unit said: “As a registered gas fitter, Matthew Eteston knew the dangers of carbon monoxide and knew the risk of death if the pipework designed to evacuate the exhaust gases failed.

“Tragically, the poor design and construction of the work he carried out on the exhaust system directly led to the deaths of Kelly Webster and Lauren Thornton. “This case should act as a warning about the terrible consequences of such a poor standard of work in the installation of appliances."