MARION, Iowa (AP) — State records say a mentally disabled woman overheated and died inside a Marion group home that had been heat-treated for bedbugs.
The Des Moines Register says 61-year-old Rhonda Skoog died at 29th Street Crest Group Home. She was found dead the morning of Aug. 30 last year, a day after superheated air was blown into the home, raising the temperature to at least 125 degrees.
State records say home staffers were undertrained and unaware that Skoog’s diagnosed sensitivity to heat was aggravated by two of her medications. Regulators fined the home $10,000.
The facility is managed by Crest Services of Des Moines. Crest Services director Jan Caldwell says the incident was unfortunate, “and we’ve done everything we can to make sure it never happens again.”
