
Photo Credit: Colin Lloyd
3 Americans Found Dead At Sandals Bahamas Resort
Three Americans were found dead at the Sandals Emerald Bay resort in the Bahamas. A fourth individual has been hospitalized, according to People.
The deceased, two men and one woman, were found in two separate villas at the popular five-star resort, which is located on the island of Great Exuma.
According to the New York Post, one of the men has been identified as Vincent Chiarella of Birmingham, Alabama. His wife Donnis, who was injured, was airlifted to Nassau‘s Princess Margaret Hospital. They had been celebrating their anniversary in the Bahamas.
In a phone call Saturday, Donnis told their son Austin that she awakened to find herself unable to move, her arms and legs swollen, and saw her husband lying on the floor. She screamed to alert people so someone would enter the room.
In a statement, the Royal Bahamas Police Force said, “Our initial investigations revealed that the couple found in the second villa complained of illness the previous evening. They attended the local medical facility and on completion of receiving treatment, they return to their lodging.”
Chris Coucheron-Aamot, an American who was also staying at the resort in a building next to where the deaths occurred, believes a malfunctioning air conditioning system may be to blame.
“It sounds like it may have been a fault with the a/c…It was hard to sleep last night — every time the a/c came on, I woke up,” he wrote in a post on Facebook.
A coolant leak, especially in enclosed spaces, could potentially reduce the oxygen in the air, and could cause asphyxiation.
As of now, the cause of the sudden deaths and hospitalization remains unknown. Upon initial examination, no signs of trauma were discovered, but the guests showed signs of having had convulsions. According to officials, foul play is not suspected. However, the police are continuing to investigate and await official autopsies to determine the cause of the deaths.
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