Deputies find home filling with natural gas, woman and disabled daughter hospitalized

A Pontiac woman and her adult disabled daughter were hospitalized late Tuesday night after sheriff’s deputies conducting a welfare check found high levels of natural gas from a stove permeating the house and other concerns. According to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were dispatched to a residence in the 700 block of Whittemore Street shortly before 11:30 p.m. after the woman’s friend reported that she couldn’t reach her by phone. The friend also stated that the woman lives with her non-communicative handicapped adult daughter, the sheriff’s office said.

Deputies reportedly got no answer when knocking on the door of the house, then after looking through a window and seeing a woman lying on the floor, forced their way inside. That’s when they detected a strong odor of natural gas coming from a stove burner that had been turned on but not ignited, the sheriff’s office said. A crew from the Waterford Regional Fire Department and Star EMS also arrived on the scene. The sheriff’s office said it didn’t appear the burner had been turned on for cooking purposes as there was no food nearby. Deputies also found vomit with undigested pills in multiple locations throughout the home, the sheriff’s office said.

The woman, age 65, was transported to an area hospital where she was listed in critical condition as of Wednesday morning, the sheriff’s office said, and her daughter, age 36, was transported to another area hospital where she was listed in stable condition. The incident is under investigation.