Dominican Republic deaths: Newlywed Louisiana bride dies a week after returning from honeymoon
The death toll of people who have mysteriously died after visiting the Dominican Republic is only rising. Susan Simoneaux of Luling died on Tuesday, June 18, in a local hospital after returning from Punta Cana a week ago. Her cause of death is still unclear but her symptoms are very similar to the other tourists who have died.
“I would have never gone if I had known,” said her husband, Keith Williams adding, "I did not know." Like the other victims, including Pennsylvania psychotherapist Miranda Schaup-Werner, Nathaniel Holmes, and Cynthia Ann Day, who visited the Dominican Republic and were found dead with their lungs filled with fluid, Simoneaux was also found in the same way. "She came across the street and hugged my wife and they were all joyous," Jim Tate, the couple's neighbor said. "It was a couple of days, maybe three before she went into the hospital. It was just that quick."
An autopsy has been planned, reported WWL.
FBI agents are also looking into the matter and are running toxicology tests on three of the Americans who have died, communications director Carlos Suero told CNN. Samples were also taken from the mini bars and the hotel rooms to be tested for bacteria. The water in the hotels is also being checked. Simoneaux is the 11th American to die at the popular holiday destination.
However, a Ministry of Health spokesman from the country maintained that this was an attempt to hurt the island's tourism industry. "It's all a hysteria against the Dominican Republic, to hurt our tourism, this is a very competitive industry and we get millions of tourists, we are a popular destination. People are taking aim at us. The testing results are all negative, everything – the food, the alcohol, the air – is normal, there is no alteration of the alcohol," he said in an interview with Fox News.