West Salem, IL – Carbon monoxide leaking from the faulty exhaust system of the vehicle in which he was a passenger is suspected as the cause of death of a 3-year-old West Salem, Ill., boy Thursday afternoon.
James M. Clark, the son of Gloria L. Clark and Jeffrey Hunley of West Salem, was pronounced dead Thursday afternoon after being transported to the Richland Memorial Hospital in Olney.
I was dispatched to the Clark residence at 209 North Prairie St. at 1:27 Thursday afternoon for an unresponsive child, said West Salem Police Chief Harvey Fenton. This wasn’t a case of someone leaving their child unattended in a car. The boy was in a child seat and was traveling with his mother when he was apparently overcome by carbon monoxide.
Fenton said he immediately started CPR on the child until EMT’s from a local ambulance crew arrived. The child was then transported to the hospital in Olney, where he was pronounced dead. The child had attended a preschool class earlier in the day, Fenton said, and appeared to have been healthy before being placed in the car.
The child’s mother was not affected by the carbon monoxide, the police chief said.
Fenton said it appeared the 1996 Jeep Cherokee had a faulty exhaust system that allowed exhaust gasses to seep into the vehicle, which was operating with the windows rolled up. Fenton added that the incident remains under investigation, and a more detailed inspection of the Jeep is planned.
The Richland County coroner has scheduled an autopsy Friday to confirm the cause of the death.