Families of three friends who died in an Airbnb rental while vacationing in Mexico City sought answers to the mysterious death of their loved ones for more than a week.
Jordan Marshall, 28, Kandace Florence, 28, and Courtez Hall, 33, travelled to Mexico in late October for a vacation, and to celebrate the popular Mexican holiday, Dia De Los Muertos, which in English means Day of the Dead.
On the night of October 30, Florence was on the phone with her boyfriend, who did not accompany the group on their journey. After speaking for a while, Florence started complaining to her boyfriend that she was feeling unwell. She then told him something was not right before the call disconnected.
Despite the boyfriend’s many attempts to call her back, her phone went unanswered. He became anxious and concerned for her, so he contacted the Airbnb host and asked them to go and check on the trio.
A short while later, local law enforcement officers arrived at the Airbnb residence and found Florence and her two friends, Marshall and Hall, dead.
After finding out about the mysterious passing of their loved ones, the families of the deceased tried to find out what happened to their children. They said they were in contact with the US Embassy in Mexico and also traveled to Mexico City to find out what happened, but the authorities were not very helpful.
Marshall’s mother, Jennifer Marshall, told reporters that the Mexican police did not disclose any information about the deaths to the families. She also said that the language barrier was a huge problem.
She said that Marshall and Florence had attended Kellam High School and had been best friends ever since. She had a picture of the two dressed in their Day of the Dead costumes.
Jordan’s sister, the first in the family to get the tragic news, said that she got the news via a message on social media, adding that the most challenging part about reading the message was figuring out how she would break the news to her mother.
The US Department of State released a statement confirming the deaths of the three friends. The statement also said that they were closely monitoring local authorities’ investigations into the cause of their deaths.
Kelvin Florence, Florence’s father, said that nobody in Mexico had reached out to the families of the deceased in the United States to inform them of their deaths.
Freida Florence, her mother, said that the news was heartbreaking. She was going to celebrate her 29th birthday this Thursday, but instead, the family will be holding a candlelight vigil for her.
According to the Marshall family, Jordan’s body has already been returned to Virginia. Florence’s body will be returned to the US soon.
On Tuesday, Mexican authorities revealed the cause of death of the American tourists – carbon monoxide poisoning, according to autopsy reports.
In the US, approximately 430 people die every year from accidental carbon monoxide poisoning and about 50,000 seek emergency care each year.
