A third person has died following the fire at a Bucks County nursing home that claimed the lives of two other people and injured 20 others days before Christmas.
Bristol Township identified resident Patricia Mero, 66, as the latest death following the fire that destroyed parts of the Bristol Health & Rehab Center in Bristol Township on Dec. 23. Police could not confirm when Mero died, and will confirm the cause of death during her autopsy Tuesday afternoon.
Nurse Muthoni Nduthu and a woman that Bristol Township Police identified as Ann Reddy were also killed in the fire.
An explosion occurred at the nursing home in the early afternoon on Dec. 23, flattening a section of the building that collapsed the first floor and sent people and debris tumbling into the basement. Bristol Fire Chief Kevin Dippolito said that at one point, a heavy odor of gas forced firefighters out of the building, only for another explosion to go off 30 seconds later.
Many residents and visitors of the 174-bed nursing home reported the smell of gas in the days leading up to the disaster. Additionally, Peco had visited the nursing home hours before the explosion.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is leading an investigation into the cause of the fire, while the owners of the nursing home, Saber Healthcare Group, Peco, and others are being sued for their alleged negligence in the fiery explosion.
On Monday, the NTSB announced it completed on-scene work in Bristol and will release a preliminary report on its findings by early February.
The investigation into the fire will likely take months, with experts telling The Inquirer that federal investigators will focus on Peco and the nursing home operator’s actions leading up to the explosion.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.