Woman Died Due To Extreme Heat From Bedbug Treatment, Negligence Lawsuit Claims

An 82-year-old woman’s family who claims a bedbug extermination treatment killed her is suing the pest control company as well as the owners of the Houston apartment complex in which the woman resided.

Bedbugs are typically killed with a combination of aerosol spray and heat treatment. The latter is what Elizabeth Ashbaugh’s family said caused the temperature in her apartment to rise to a scorching 139 degrees and ultimately kill her, they wrote in a negligence lawsuit filed in Harris County on Tuesday, the Houston Chronicle reported

They alleged that the extreme heat caused hyperthermia, which is when the body goes to an abnormally high temperature and can no longer function properly—a problem which is especially risky for older adults, according to the National Institute on Aging.

http://www.newsweek.com/died-extreme-heat-bed-bug-treatment-negligence-lawsuit-816703