SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) – Samples taken from three tourists from Tennessee and Florida who died under mysterious circumstances at a resort in the Bahamas have been sent to a U.S. laboratory to speed up the results and help the authorities understand what happened. said the officers. Monday.
Bahamian Police Commissioner Paul Rolle said officers also collected samples from guest rooms and neighboring properties to determine if there were contaminants.
“We really want to know what caused it,” he said.
He identified the victims as a couple from Tennessee, Michael Phillips, 68, and Robbie Phillips, 65, and Vincent Paul Chiarela, 64, living in Florida. Rolle refused to return to his hometown.
Chiarela’s husband Donis was taken to a hospital in Florida and remained in critical condition, Rolle said.
Their bodies were found Friday morning at the Sandals Emerald Bay Exuma resort, where the couple stays in two separate villas.
Phillips apparently owns a company called Royal Travel, while Robbie Phillips, who calls himself “Sand Lady,” specializes in arranging trips to sandal resorts. On Thursday he posted pictures of the resort’s beach on his Facebook page and said he was with his wife.
The company’s website says the couple has three children and six grandchildren.
Samples taken from the victims were sent to a Philadelphia laboratory, the results of a toxicology study expected in about a week, Rolle said. He noted that the Bahamas Department of the Environment and police are still at the resort.
When asked what he thought might have caused the tourists’ deaths, Rolle said, “I won’t speculate.”
He said all four tourists went to the doctor the night before their bodies were found and complained that they were not feeling well. They said they had different walks and different foods.
Meanwhile, Sandals Resorts said it would not make further comment other than the initial statement saying it supports the investigation and the families of the victims.
“Out of respect for the privacy of our visitors, we will not be able to disclose any further information at this time,” the company said in a statement.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Ned Price also confirmed the deaths of three American citizens and expressed “sincere condolences to the families and other loved ones of the deceased.”
“We are closely monitoring the investigations of the local authorities into the cause of death and we are ready to provide all relevant assistance to the consulate,” he added.
The death came seven years after the Delaware family became seriously ill at a resort in the U.S. Virgin Islands. U.S. authorities discovered that methyl bromide, a highly toxic pesticide banned for indoor use in 1984, was the culprit and was used several times at the resort.
Associated Press reporter Michael Catalin contributed in Trenton, New Jersey.
Source: Huffpost
