×

12th nursing home patient dies

MIAMI (AP) — A 12th patient has died after being taken from an overheated Florida nursing home that lost its air conditioning during Hurricane Irma, officials confirmed on Friday.

Dolores Biamonte, 57, died Thursday night, according to a statement from the Broward County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Hollywood police are treating all 12 deaths from the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills as part of a criminal investigation, spokeswoman Miranda Grossman said in a statement.

Eight patients died Sept. 13, three days after the storm knocked out the nursing home’s air conditioning. Others died in the following days. Some who died had body temperatures as high as 109.9 degrees Fahrenheit.

Investigators want to know why the patients died after the storm even though a fully functioning hospital sits just across the street from the nursing home, Grossman said.

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

Starting at $2.99/week.

Subscribe Today