Naples, FL – A Golden Gate Estates man was found dead in his garage Monday morning of possible carbon monoxide poisoning.
Yusdel Moreno Iglesias, 35, was found face down next to a car with blood running from his nose, according to a Collier County Sheriff’s Office incident report. His girlfriend found him but could not call 911 because she had nso cell service. She screamed for neighbors to help.
This is the first hurricane-related death being investigated by the Sheriff’s Office, according to spokeswoman Michelle Batten. According to a Friday report from the American College of Emergency Physicians, Florida has seen 74 cases of carbon monoxide poisoning in the last two days.
Collier County Sheriff’s deputies patrolling the Estates district were flagged down by residents and told about a “possible deceased male” in the area of Everglades Boulevard and Second Avenue Northeast around 8:40 a.m. Monday, according to a Sheriff’s Office incident report.
Residents led deputies to a home on the 3600 block of Second Ave. NE, where they were met with “a strong smell” of combustion byproducts in the house and the garage. Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless and tasteless gas.
Deputies went inside the garage and found the man lying face down on the floor next to a car.
Iglesias’ girlfriend of 14 years, Lidicis Garcia Villafana, told investigators that around 9 p.m. Sunday, the man told her he was going to the garage to cool off inside the car. He also wanted to charge his phone and their 9-year-old daughter’s iPad, the report states.
Villafana and her daughter went to sleep in the girl’s room, according to the report. The woman told investigators at one point the man went inside the house to grab a pillow and blanket so he could keep charging the electronics in the car.
Around 7:30 the next morning, Villafana woke up and realized her boyfriend wasn’t in the house, the report states. She went to the garage and found him on the floor.
Their daughter went to the garage when she heard her mother’s screams, but before the girl could see her father, Villafana grabbed the girl and ran outside with her.