Two Tarrant County women died of hypothermia last week.
Tarrant County Medical Examiner's records showed one of those women died at her home in Fort Worth during the winter storm that brought extreme cold to our area.
Days later, records showed another woman died of hypothermia she developed at a Grand Prairie retirement home.
Hypothermia happens when prolonged exposure to severe cold causes the body’s temperature to drop so low that the heart and other organs stop functioning.
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The first death came last Tuesday when a winter storm drove temperatures across DFW into the teens.
Tarrant County Medical Examiner's records showed that on Jan. 16, 81-year-old Odessa Johnson developed hypothermia at her home on Bratcher Street in Fort Worth.
The Fort Worth Fire Department told NBC 5 that Johnson was found dead inside of her home.
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Neighbors said the elderly woman lived there alone and struggled to take care of herself.
“It was hard for the neighbors to get involved,” said Mark Cooper, one of Johnson’s neighbors. “And it's a tragic situation that she passed the way that she did.”
Five days later, another death from cold.
The Tarrant County Medical Examiner's office said 78-year-old Vernestine Kidd developed hypothermia at Mountain Creek Senior Living in Grand Prairie.
Kidd was hospitalized and died on Jan. 21.
“It's shocking to know that she died like that living in a facility like that,” said Christopher Kidd, who was Vernestine Kidd’s stepson.
Family members said Vernestine Kidd was a quiet, kind woman.
With temperatures dropping below freezing the night she died, Kidd's stepson was left with questions for the retirement home.
“First of all, why was she outside?” Christopher Kidd said. “And secondly I guess, how could she be out there and nobody knows where she is, especially in these weather conditions.”
NBC 5 went to Mountain Creek Senior Living to ask how Kidd developed hypothermia. The staff wouldn't release any information and told us to contact Kidd's family. The Grand Prairie Police Department also wouldn't answer questions about the incident.
“Unfortunately we cannot give out any information due to HIPAA," GPPD responded to our request for information about what led up to Kidd’s death.
Family members told NBC 5 those responses didn't sit right with them.
“No, not at all, especially if it's something that's unknown,” Christopher Kidd said. “It's puzzling.”
NBC 5 also reached out to the management company that runs Mountain Creek Senior Living, asking how Kidd developed hypothermia and if the community has policies to make sure residents are accounted for. We're waiting to hear back.
