Gas company employee, wife die after Hydrogen Sulfide gas poisoning

ECTOR COUNTY, Texas (KCBD) - A husband and wife died as a result of H2S (Hydrogen Sulfide) gas poisoning late Saturday night, according to the Ector County Sheriff’s Office.

Deputies say 44-year-old Jacob D. Dean responded to a call from Aghorn Energy to check a pump house located at 2216 W. 49th in Ector County.

When Jacob’s wife Natalee did not hear from him in a timely manner, she went to the pump house he was working on to check on him.

Reports say she took her 9-year-old and 6-year-old children in the car with her.

The investigation shows she arrived on location, got out of the vehicle, left the kids in the car and walked up to the pump house where she was overtaken with the H2S gas exposure.

An Aghorn Energy supervisor called law enforcement to have officers check the location since he had not heard a status report from the employee.

When deputies and EMS arrived, they noticed the Hydrogen Sulfide gas.

Since the children stayed in the car and were away from the pump house, both only had a slight exposure to the gas.

The children were removed from the scene by EMS, were decontaminated and taken to the hospital for further treatment.

The children were turned over the grandparents . Investigation continues into this matter.

Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) Hydrogen sulfide is a colorless, flammable, extremely hazardous gas with a “rotten egg” smell that occurs at low concentrations, and nausea, headaches and death occurring at higher levels. Some common names for the gas include sewer gas, stink damp, swamp gas and manure gas. It occurs naturally in crude petroleum, natural gas, and hot springs.