Holiday drama in Egypt: couple dies after possible CO poisoning

Holiday drama in Egypt: couple dies after possible CO poisoning

A dramatic incident in Egypt has plunged the family of a couple from the Rhein-Erft district into deep sadness. Loud HNA Contact with the family suddenly broke off after the 63-year-old woman and her 64-year-old husband traveled to Hurghada for several months. When a concerned relative investigated the situation, he found the woman lifeless in the holiday apartment, while her husband lay next to her seriously injured and has been in a coma ever since.

The couple's last messages said they had left for Egypt at the end of March, at which point they had been in regular contact with the family. The tribulation quickly raised serious suspicions that carbon monoxide poisoning may have been the cause of the disaster. The son reported that garbage was burning in the apartment due to the high temperatures, which may have led to a cable fire.

The Dangers of Carbon Monoxide

Carbon monoxide is an insidious gas produced by incomplete combustion and is increasingly recognized as a health risk in the workplace. Symptoms of poisoning can appear quickly or develop gradually. With mild poisoning, nausea, dizziness and headaches may occur. In severe cases, there is a risk of impaired consciousness, shortness of breath or even circulatory failure, as the brain and heart are particularly vulnerable, as the AOK explains in an article: AOK highlights that warning signs are often not immediately associated with carbon monoxide poisoning.

Symptoms of severe poisoning range from seizures to severe chest pain and should be taken absolutely seriously. Only a fresh supply of oxygen helps in the treatment, because the elimination half-life for carbon monoxide is almost six hours under normal conditions - but under pure oxygen it can be shortened to one to two hours, like that DocCheck Flexikon explained.

The consequences and the financial pressure

Although the 63-year-old did not survive the accident, the 64-year-old was taken to a private clinic in Hurghada and later transferred to a specialized facility in Cologne. The family assessed the man's chances of survival as slim, but they still held out hope for a recovery. However, dealing with the costs resulting from the treatment abroad and the hospital stay represents a massive burden: the medical transport costs were covered thanks to ADAC membership, but the total costs for treatment and the transport of the body are around 20,000 euros.

Since the husband's international health insurance only covers a stay of 56 days and the couple had already been in Egypt for 70 days, the family planned to start a fundraising campaign on Paypal. This campaign proved successful within two weeks and provides at least some of the financial relief that the family desperately needs.