The investigation into carbon monoxide deaths at a Best Western in Boone, North Carolina, came too late for an 11-year-old boy.
A mother and her 11-year-old son, Jeffrey, were staying in Room 225 at the Best Western in Boone, North Carolina, in June of 2013. At about 10 p.m. Jeffrey was in bed when Jeannie felt sick and went to the bathroom. 14 hours later, a motel housekeeper found them. Jeffery was dead, and his mother near death. It was carbon monoxide poisoning.
Less than 2 months earlier, two others had died of carbon monoxide poisoning in the same room. A husband and wife were found dead the morning after they checked into the motel. Although their children suspected carbon monoxide poisoning and told the medical examiner, the hotel and the police, it took Jeffrey’s death to get anyone to take action.
A hazardous materials team discovered fatally high levels of carbon monoxide coming from the swimming pool water heater, according to news reports.
A prosecutor is looking into criminal charges, and the families have hired attorneys (not our lawyers) and are expected to file wrongful death lawsuits. We hope the legal actions taken hold all wrongdoers accountable, and it appears there were many here.
It is beyond shocking that the North Carolina’s medical examiner responsible for this case failed to determine that the cause of death was carbon monoxide poisoning within days of the Jenkins deaths. He did not even enter room 225 to investigate.
The hotel just kept having people stay in that room when it was obvious that there was a problem. Certainly, the management should have had the room and surrounding area tested for carbon monoxide. But no one did anything, according to news reports. It is unconscionable.