LAKE CHARLES, Louisiana — After surviving Hurricane Laura just 3 months ago, a family with Minnesota ties died just days later from carbon monoxide poisoning.
Now, their relatives hope this tragic story can save others.
"I don’t want anybody to go through what I went through," said beloved Twin Cities media personality, Sheletta Brundidge.
Five caskets lined the front of a church in Lake Charles Louisiana, each of them representing a life connected to Brundidge.
"Two generations in one family wiped out overnight," said Brundidge.
Wiped out in the wake of Hurricane Laura, after carbon monoxide from a generator left in the garage of her family’s home seeped inside.
"The wind was still very strong and it closed the garage," said Brundidge.
With no functioning carbon monoxide detectors in the home, Brundidge is now partnering with the State Fire Marshal, using the pain associated with her family’s loss to ultimately assist in saving yours.
"An entire family could be inside of a home dying from carbon monoxide poisoning and nobody would know," said Brundidge.
According to the CDC more than 400 people die every year from accidental carbon monoxide poising, which Brundidge says doesn’t have to happen, urging the importance of having functioning detectors in the home.
"You need them in your ice house, you need them on every level of your home, you need them wherever you are in your RV or at your cabin," said Brundidge.
Five lives, taken tragically in the middle of the night, Brundidge says now serving a much grater purpose.
"I want them to remember our family’s story not because it's so sad or we need sympathy or we need you to grieve, no, I need you to be educated about the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning so we can save you and your family and your children and your grandparents lives," said Brundidge.
Brundidge is partnering with First Alert to distribute carbon monoxide detectors to families in need.
Send an email request to shelettamakesmelaugh.com.