Police say an elderly woman in Upper Merion Township died due to Carbon Monoxide poisoning and that a preliminary investigation shows that a gas-powered generator being used after Sandy knocked out power caused the fumes.
Tuesday morning around 10:45, police and ambulance personnel responded to a report of an unconscious 90-year-old woman inside a home on the 600 block of Charlestown Drive in the Swedeland section of Upper Merion.
When they arrived, they found the woman’s body on her bed. Officials say monitoring equipment also indicated high levels of Carbon Monoxide inside the house. Two more people inside the home were evacuated and the Swedeland Fire Department arrived to ventilate the home.
Investigators say that a portable gas-powered generator was being used in the garage since the power went out at the home around midnight as Sandy passed over. The homeowners were sleeping on the third floor while the elderly woman was sleeping on the first floor in a hospital bed. Police say the generator was used to power a light for her.
Police didn't immediately release the identity of the woman.
