Darwen boy, 17, dies after suspected asthma attack (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Darwen boy, 17, dies after suspected asthma attack

8:10pm Friday 8th August 2008

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A 17-YEAR-old boy has died after suffering a suspected asthma attack.

Jeffrey Owen Hodgson’s family have paid an emotional tribute, describing him as a popular boy who loved life.

Jeff, as he was known, fell ill in his bedroom in Gifford Way, Darwen, in front of three-year-old brother Aidan.

The toddler ran down stairs to tell his mum and dad that Jeff could not breathe.

Sandra and Geoff, both 48, called an ambulance but Jeff collapsed before paramedics arrived.

He was taken to the Royal Blackburn Hospital and doctors tried three times to revive him but he was pronounced dead.

Mum Sandra said: “Jeff loved life and was looking forward to everything that was to come.

“I don’t know how we are going to manage without him. Our lives are not going to be same.

“We are going to miss everything about him. This has left a big hole in our lives.

“It’s going to be hard without him for the rest of our lives.

“Being his mum, like a normal mum, one minute you argue the next minute you would be laughing.

“Even when you were serious he was cracking jokes.”

Jeff had suffered from asthma, the chronic condition where the airways become constricted by triggers such as exercise, exertion, or emotional stress, since the age of two.

An inquest was opened this week but further tests will be carried out ahead of a full hearing to confirm the cause of death.

Dad Geoff added: “Jeff knew how to deal with his asthma. He had been in hospital many times before and he had it under control.

“He hadn’t had a serious asthma attack for many years.

“This was totally unexpected.

“He was popular. We didn’t realise how many friends he had.

“He was becoming a man. He changed so much in the last six month, even his face.” Motorcycle enthusiast Jeff grew up in Warton and attended St Bede’s High School, Lytham.

The family moved from Warton over two-and-a-half years ago when they bought their house in Darwen Jeff planned to become an electrician. He was also a keen sportsmen and ran for Flyde and Stanley Park.

Jeff, who had worked part time at McDonalds fast food restaurant in Livesey Branch Road, had just completed a Sports Diploma at Blackburn College and the family were preparing to move back to Preston to be closer to family and friends.

He was looking forward to his 18th birthday on September 1 and was planning a family meal and a night out with his friends.

Dad Geoff said: “He had no fear.

“He used to run the 100 metres. He was fast and I could never catch him. He used to run for Fyldeand StanleyPark”

Sandra said his asthma never stopped him ‘coming first in races’.

She said: “With him having asthma what was easy for other kids was hard for him. He wouldn’t show it. But I knew and I could see he was struggling.

“He used to ask ‘why him’. But he would not let asthma stand in his way.

“He lived life the way he wanted.

“We are proud of everything he achieved.

“We all loved him so much.”

Sister Tanya Hodgson, 27, from Fulwood, who is due to give birth on October 6, said: “He was becoming a man. He was going from tracksuit bottoms to smart jeans and t-shirts.

“He was looking forward to the baby so much.”

The funeral will take place at St Clare’s Parish Church, Fulwood, on Monday at 11.30am. The service will then end at Lytham Crematorium.

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