A MOTHER-OF-THREE from York died after suffering an asthma attack while 26 weeks’ pregnant, an inquest was told.

Claire Barrett’s partner Stephen Willoughby heard her shouting in the middle of the night that she could not breathe.

He went downstairs at their Clementhorpe home to find her in the kitchen struggling for breath, and she then collapsed.

He battled to save her with cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) until paramedics arrived and took her to York Hospital.

Efforts to save her continued there and an emergency Caesarian section was carried out to deliver the baby, but both Claire and subsequently her baby Stevie-Mae died.

“This is an absolute tragedy,” said York Coroner, Donald Coverdale, recording a verdict of death by natural causes.

“It’s a very sad story indeed.”

He said Claire, 31, of Board Street, suffered from hypertension and chronic asthma, which always worsened in summer and this happened again last July.

He said her partner Stephen had said in a statement that Claire used inhalers to treat her condition and had also used a nebuliser in hospital and had been prescribed steroids.

Last July, her condition had worsened and she had been to see her GP, who said she needed to go to the hospital, but she had not gone. “She said she would go if she had to,” he said.

On the evening of July 26, her condition appeared to have improved and she only needed to use her inhaler a couple of times. He said she drank lager because it helped her to relax. The couple drank eight cans between them before going to bed.

He was woken by her shouting from the kitchen that she could not breathe and to call an ambulance.

He said he and their children went downstairs, where Claire fell to the floor on her back. One of the children found the phone and dialled 999, and the operator told him to push down on her chest until the ambulance arrived.

Mr Coverdale said: “This was a particularly unpleasant and serious (asthma) attack. Her partner did what he could.”