Jasper County Sheriff's Department deputies found the three at about 6:40 a.m. at Royalty Arena in Sarcoxie, Mo., where they attended a horse sale that concluded on Saturday. Lt. Derek Walrod said police received a 911 call from Jeffrey Cox's girlfriend, 39-year-old Leslie Hodges, who suffered carbon-monoxide poisoning and hypothermia in the incident but survived. Deputies found the Coxes dead in the front bedding area of the large horse trailer. A gas generator being used to power an electric heater in the sleeping area was inside the rear of the trailer, Walrod said. All windows in the trailer were closed, Thomas said. Police said they don't know why the generator was in the trailer but that it may have been put there Sunday night during a thunderstorm. There were no carbon-monoxide detectors or horses in the trailer, Walrod said. Funeral arrangements were unavailable this morning. "/>
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Windows in horse trailer were closed, police say
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
By Rex Hall Jr.
rhall@kalamazoogazette.com 388-7784
Windows of a horse trailer that became a death trap for a Marcellus teenager and her younger brother and father were closed when the three were found dead from carbon-monoxide poisoning, investigators in Missouri say.
A generator that apparently had been running in the back of the trailer was out of gas by the time the bodies of Kayla M. Cox, 17, her 14-year-old brother, Derrick, and their father, Jeffrey A. Cox, 40, were found, said Sgt. Ron Thomas of the Jasper County Sheriff's Department.
Kayla Cox was a sophomore at Marcellus High School. Derrick Cox attended middle school in Marcellus but had gone this year to live with his father in Warsaw, Ind., according to school officials.
Jasper County Sheriff's Department deputies found the three at about 6:40 a.m. at Royalty Arena in Sarcoxie, Mo., where they attended a horse sale that concluded on Saturday. Lt. Derek Walrod said police received a 911 call from Jeffrey Cox's girlfriend, 39-year-old Leslie Hodges, who suffered carbon-monoxide poisoning and hypothermia in the incident but survived.
Deputies found the Coxes dead in the front bedding area of the large horse trailer. A gas generator being used to power an electric heater in the sleeping area was inside the rear of the trailer, Walrod said. All windows in the trailer were closed, Thomas said.
Police said they don't know why the generator was in the trailer but that it may have been put there Sunday night during a thunderstorm. There were no carbon-monoxide detectors or horses in the trailer, Walrod said.
Funeral arrangements were unavailable this morning.
Posted 2006-11-16 7:57 AM (#51574 - in reply to #51540) Subject: RE: Carbon Monoxide Deaths - Again.
Member
Posts: 13
Location: wichita, ks
A very sad reminder to us all that not only should we have carbon monoxide detectors in our trailers, we should also make certain they are working. I have seen all kinds of things that I felt were unsafe at horse shows. Is it safe to leave your generator in the back if you also leave the back door open? What about the generator in the back of your truck but still hooked up to the trailer? Had someone pull in beside me late one night with their generator in their truck right next to my open window. The fumes and the noise were so bad that I hooked up my trailer and moved. I would like to see someone post information about what is safe and what isn't! Where is the best place for a generator? Mine is on the roof, any safety issues with that?
Posted 2006-11-16 9:16 AM (#51577 - in reply to #51540) Subject: RE: Carbon Monoxide Deaths - Again.
Elite Veteran
Posts: 785 Location: Tenn/Ala.
A very sad occurence- But aome safety reminders-
A) Replace the 9V battery in your LQ trailer's smoke detectors twice a year just like at home. I've seen many running around without any battery at all.
B) If your LQ trailer is more than 5 years old, check your LP leak detector & your CO detector (if equipped). And yes, they are two seperate items. They should actually have an expiration date stamped on them and need to be replaced after a certain period of time. It seems the detector eye gets weak & isn't effective at old age. A lot of LQ trailers will have a smoke & LP detector, but unless a generator was installed, a CO detector wasn't required. LP detectors are generally close to the floor, CO detectors are generally higher up on the wall or in the bunk area.
Posted 2006-11-16 3:10 PM (#51604 - in reply to #51540) Subject: RE: Carbon Monoxide Deaths - Again.
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 560 Location: Mena, AR
hmm.. I wondered why I had two detectors in addition to the smoke alarm in in my trailer. I'll have to see if they are different. I carry spare batteries in my trailer so I can replace any of these detector batteries when they need them. What's the beep, beep, beep in the middle of the night..... ;-) I didn't know about the weak eye thing. Thanks for the info.
Betty
Carbon Monoxide Deaths - Again.
