Bahamas’ Sandals resort death: Autopsy reveals three Americans died by carbon monoxide poisoning

Autopsy and toxicology reports related to the deaths of three American tourists at the Sandals Emerald Bay resort in the Bahamas determined the cause of death to be carbon monoxide poisoning. The information was released by the medical examiner without any further explanation.

A Bahamian pathologist conducted the autopsies after the mysterious deaths of Tennessee couple Michael Phillips, 68, and Robbie Phillips, 65, and Vincent Chiarella, 64, who lived in Florida. Chiarella’s wife Donnis Chiarella, 65, was airlifted to a hospital in Miami, Florida, after she was found alive. She is reported to be in good condition now.

What happened to the three Americans at the Bahamas' Sandals resort?

The couple and Chiarella, who were not traveling together, were discovered unconscious in their respective villas in the Sandals resort on the Great Exuma Bahamas Island on Friday, May 6. A report about an unresponsive guest, presumably Vincent Chiarella, was called in to the Georgetown Police Station around 9.00 am that morning.

While the police were en route to the resort, another man and woman, presumably Michael and Robbie Phillips, were also discovered unresponsive in another villa in the Bahamas resort. The deceased didn't show any signs of trauma but reportedly showed signs of convulsions, as per the Royal Bahamian Police.

The three tourists had allegedly sought medical help after feeling ill the previous night. A statement by the Chirarellas' son Austin Chiarella, as well as police records, confirmed that the victims had "attended the local Medical facility," where they had received treatment and been discharged shortly after.

Austin Chiarella recounted what his mother had told him about waking up to see her husband unconscious across the room:

"She woke up and my dad was laying there on the floor, and she couldn't move. Her legs and arms was swollen and she couldn't move and she screamed to get someone to come in the door."

There has been a lot of speculation regarding the cause of the mysterious deaths of the three Americans, and various possibilities are being probed.

TripAdvisor reviews from guests who lodged at the Bahamas resort during the same time also complained of the strong odor of pesticides, malfunctioning thermostats, bugs in the room, "vomit" in bathrooms, and jammed doors, resulting in a general consensus that the once-luxurious resort is now in a "state of disrepair."

Expand Tweet

Most notable amongst the speculations is the air-conditioning leak theory posited by fellow guest Chris Coucheron-Aamot in a Facebook post. He claimed that the incident could have been caused by "a fault with the A/C in the unit, causing a toxic coolant leak," which is very close to the actual cause of carbon monoxide poisoning.

In a statement by the Bahamas' Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. Michael Darville revealed that the families of the victims have requested a second, independent autopsy by American technicians in addition to the autopsy conducted by the Bahamian pathologist. Darville told Eyewitness Week:

“There’s still some investigations ongoing at the Sandals resort. We also have the pathologists in-country who have done their job and samples were sent to a very reliable lab in the United States. The toxicology reports are still outstanding. There were requests by family members of the deceased to bring in a pathologist from abroad to do another autopsy.”

Darville also mentioned that the families requested for the bodies to be returned to the United States, which would entail embalming the bodies to ship them over water.