What to know about the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning after college
student’s death
[February 26, 2026]
By The Associated Press
A Rhode Island college football player died from carbon monoxide
poisoning after he tried to charge his phone in his car during a massive
snow storm in a power outage.
The storm knocked out power for hundreds of thousands of people across
the Northeast.
First responders found 21-year-old Salve Regina University student
Joseph Boutros unresponsive in his car on Monday in Newport, Rhode
Island, where he was parked outside of a university building. Police
said the vehicle’s exhaust pipe was obstructed by snow and that his
death from carbon monoxide poisoning was accidental.
The area didn't have power at the time and Boutros told a fellow student
that he was using his car to charge his phone, Newport Police Captain
Joseph Carroll said. The university's football team said they were
“heartbroken” about Boutros' death, which they announced in an Instagram
post.
Many Rhode Island residents faced a third straight morning stuck in
their homes on Wednesday as some residential streets remain unplowed.
Blizzards present a host of hazards, ranging from slippery ice to severe
cold. But one of the most lethal risks posed by heavy snowfall is
completely undetectable to humans.
Here is what to know about the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning —
especially during power outages and cold weather.
Time of year with highest risk of carbon monoxide poisoning
The risk of carbon monoxide poisoning is higher in the winter and after
heavy snowfall, according to the Centers for Disease Control. During
cold weather, people are more likely to use furnaces and heaters that
emit the lethal gas.
A number of malfunctions can obstruct proper ventilation, including
snowfall that can block exhaust pipes or vents.
How does carbon monoxide affect the body
Carbon monoxide is often referred to as the “silent killer” because it
is odorless, colorless and tasteless. Prolonged exposure to carbon
monoxide reduces the ability of blood to carry oxygen to the body’s
organs.
It can cause throbbing headaches, disorientation and drowsiness,
followed by unconsciousness, convulsions and eventually death.
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This photo provided by Salve Regina University shows Joseph Boutros,
student at the college, posing for a photo on the Salve Regina
University campus in Newport, R.I., Sept. 2025. (Clara Maurer/Salve
Regina University via AP)
 Why people die from exposure in
the winter
When people use heating systems without proper air flow or
ventilation — such as running their car in a closed garage, bringing
grills inside or using gas stoves for personal heat — carbon
monoxide can build up and become dangerous. That is especially
common in tragic cases like the one that led to Boutros’ death on
Monday, where people wait in their cars for long periods of time
without realizing that an exhaust pipe is obstructed.
One of the most notable examples happened in 1978, when a snowstorm
dropped two feet (0.6 meters) of snow across New England over the
course of roughly 30 hours. Snow fell so fast that it trapped
roughly 3,000 cars and 500 trucks along eight miles (13km) of one
highway in Massachusetts, according to the New England Historical
Society.
That year, 14 people died of carbon monoxide poisoning while sitting
in their snowbound vehicles.
But the risk is not limited to just cars. More than three dozen
people died in a historic 2022 storm, and at least one died from
snow covering furnaces and sending carbon monoxide into their New
York homes.
How to know whether it's safe to stay in a car
Sitting in an idling car for a long time is usually safe, according
to Jake Fisher, the senior director of auto testing at Consumer
Reports. But drivers should keep an eye out for warning signs and
have them inspected annually. Vehicles are more prone to exhaust
leaks after a crash and should be inspected before they are put back
on the road.
“Engines emit a lot of very dangerous chemicals and gases,” Fisher
said. “If your car is not running right and you hear it sounding
funny, you really do need to get it checked out.”
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