Update: Coroner IDs homeless man found dead with dog in a van parked in Kennewick
A 51-year-old homeless man and his dog were found dead in Kennewick after apparently being overcome by carbon monoxide fumes inside a van.
David Dana was living in the van in the driveway of a First Avenue home.
About 2 p.m. Thursday the person living in the house realized he hadn’t seen Dana and knocked on a window, said Benton County Coroner Bill Leach.
When no one responded, the other man tried shaking the van and then broke a window. Inside, he found Dana and his yellow Labrador dead.
When firefighters arrived, they discovered the elevated levels of carbon monoxide.
Blood samples were taken to be tested, Leach said, but officials suspect they were poisoned by the fumes.
Dana was using a parabolic propane heater for keeping warm and cooking, Leach said. He had connected it to a 5-gallon propane tank and was cooking a roast.
Dana had likely been living in the van for a while. The tabs on it expired in 2017.
“He had probably done this dozens and dozens of times,” Leach said. “This time it caught up with him.”
Leach warned people to be careful when using heaters that produce carbon monoxide, particularly when hunting or camping.
About 200 people die in the United States each year from carbon monoxide poisoning.
According to the Mayo Clinic, the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include: Dull headache, weakness, dizziness, nausea or vomiting, shortness of breath, confusion, blurred vision, loss of consciousness.
This story was originally published December 6, 2019 at 11:20 AM.