Two Garland men likely died from carbon monoxide poisoning inside apartment, police say

Feb 22, 2021

Garland, TX – Two Garland men found dead inside an apartment Friday likely died from carbon monoxide poisoning, police said.

Garland police responded around 10 a.m. to an apartment in the 200 block of South Barnes Drive after someone called and said two men inside were unresponsive.

The victims, identified as 41-year-old Arnulfo Escalante Lopez and 28-year-old Jose Anguiano Torres, were both pronounced dead at the apartment.
Officers found a gas-powered generator inside, near where the men were found, police said. The generator was turned on and connected to extension cords, but it seemed to be out of gas, police said.

Police said witnesses told officers that they heard the generator running inside the apartment on Wednesday.

The investigation is ongoing, and detectives are working with the Dallas County medical examiner’s office to determine the cause of death, police said.

This weeks’ harsh winter weather and resulting widespread power outages have led many across North Texas looking for heat alternatives, a search with has proven to be dangerous.
Area hospitals have said they’re seeing cases of hypothermia due to freezing temperatures and cases of carbon monoxide poisoning due to people trying to find warmth.

Between Sunday and midnight Wednesday, providers at Parkland Hospital saw four patients come in for cold exposure, 15 for frostbite, four for hypothermia and two for carbon monoxide poisoning, hospital spokeswoman April Foran said.

Providers at Baylor Scott & White Health have also seen patients for hypothermia and carbon monoxide poisoning throughout the week, but exact totals weren’t available as of Thursday afternoon, said spokeswoman Julie Smith.

Between Monday and Thursday, ambulance crews in Tarrant County responded to 148 hypothermia calls and 22 cases of suspected carbon monoxide poisoning, according to a MedStar spokesman.

As of Tuesday afternoon, 13 children had been treated for carbon monoxide poisoning at Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth, according to a hospital spokeswoman. The Houston Chronicle reported Tuesday that more than 200 cases of carbon monoxide poisoning had been reported in Harris County.