Man Dies of Fumes From Indoor Barbecue Grill
A 24-year-old man died of apparent carbon monoxide poisoning after inhaling fumes from a barbecue brought inside a Van Nuys apartment after a birthday dinner, authorities said.
The victim was identified as Hugo Fontela of Los Angeles, said Bob Dambacher, spokesman for the Los Angeles County coroner’s office. He was found dead about 7 p.m. Sunday in a bedroom of the apartment in the 14000 block of Delano Street, Los Angeles Police Sgt. Alfonso Rodriguez said.
Fontela had been celebrating the birthday of a friend, Teodorico Torres, 28, the night before with a barbecue chicken dinner on the patio of Torres’ apartment, Rodriguez said. Torres and his roommate, Guadalupe Rodriguez, 28, brought the barbecue inside about 11 p.m. and left it in the kitchen, Sgt. Rodriguez said. Torres told police that he checked and thought the coals were extinguished when the three men went to sleep.
When Rodriguez and Torres awoke Sunday evening, they found Fontela dead, police said.
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