21-year-old Ally Sidloski, a talented University of Cincinnati soccer player, was enjoying a break from school by boating and swimming in a southwest Ohio lake. Her promising life was cut short as the result of a tragic drowning accident.
Investigation Reveals Role Carbon Monoxide Played in Woman’s Death
Prior to entering into the water to swim, Ally Sidloski had been lounging on a Yamaha powerboat. Specifically, she was sitting on the watercraft’s swimming deck.
After learning if her death, Yamaha announced that the swimming deck is not a designated sitting area on the boat. The manufacturer made this proclamation despite the fact that the so-called swimming deck comes outfitted with cushions (for sitting) and a cupholder.
Investigation into Sidloski’s untimely death revealed that if the boat in question was left to idle for any period of time, a person sitting on what the manufacturer is now calling a swimming deck could face the prosect of carbon monoxide poisoning.
In fact, a national television program undertook research regarding the levels of carbon monoxide that could possibly occur on the “swimming deck.” Researchers from the Today morning show revealed that carbon monoxide levels would spike upwards to 700 parts per million. The stark reality is that carbon monoxide levels at 150 to 200 parts per million are considered dangerous and a threat to the wellbeing of a person exposed at the intensity.The World Health Organization advises that a 15-minute exposure to carbon monoxide at 87 parts per million can result in health issues.
Preliminary information into the death of Ally Sidloski indicate that after the young woman sat on the “swimming deck” for an extended period of time, she entered the water near the watercraft. Due to the unknowing inhalation of carbon monoxide while on board the boat, the student became overcome by the poisonous gas after entering into the water. She appears to have lost consciousness in the water as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning and died.
There is not a definitive set of statistics to individuals who are exposed to carbon monoxide while on boats and other watercraft each year. While comprehensive data on these types of fatal aquatic accidents doesn’t exist as of this moment in time, experts in the realm of boating and water safety maintain that carbon monoxide-related drownings are occurring at a higher rate than anyone previously imagined.
Despite a lack of definitive data on the death rate associated with carbon monoxide deaths on open water, some important information is now available:
- Carbon monoxide poisoning is overlooked as the cause or a contributed cause of death when a motor is use on a boat.
- Not all individuals believed to have drowned while engaging in aquatic activities adjacent to boating in fact died from drowning.
- Toxic levels of carbon monoxide can and do accrue even in open air environments.
- Too often, boaters attribute the early signs of carbon monoxide poisoning (particularly headache and nausea) to sun exposure or seasickness.
- Without supplemental oxygen, a person poisoned by carbon monoxide can have the potentially fatal substance in his or her body for between two to six hours.
If you’ve lost a loved one in a fatal aquatic accident, the legal team at The Doan Law Firm is here for you. You can connect with an aquatic accident wrongful death lawyer from our firm by calling us at (800) 349-0000 any time of the day or night. We keep our telephone line staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year.
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