A Texas hotel’s indoor swimming pool heater is under investigation after a 12-year-old girl’s birthday celebration turned into a lifethreatening carbon monoxide exposure, sending multiple family members to the hospital and raising serious questions about pool-area safety.
The incident occurred Saturday, January 17, 2026, at the Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites Waco Northwest in Bellmead, just outside Waco. What was planned as a weekend sleepover and pool party escalated into a medical emergency involving first responders and an ongoing safety investigation.
According to the family’s attorney, David Dumas, the family rented a hotel room to celebrate the girl’s birthday with siblings and friends. Swimming was the focus of the gathering, but when the group arrived at the indoor pool, the water was cold. Hotel employees then turned on the pool heater, and the children and accompanying adults spent about an hour swimming in the enclosed pool area.
During that time, family members began experiencing symptoms consistent with carbon monoxide exposure. At some point, the birthday girl’s 8-year-old sister lost consciousness, prompting her mother to perform sternum rubs in an effort to revive her before emergency services were called.
“It is a parent’s worst nightmare,” Dumas said. “Can you imagine being a parent, like I am, and having a birthday party for your child and having to revive your child?”
First responders transported at least three children and two adults to a local hospital for evaluation and treatment. Due to the severity of her condition, the unconscious 8-year-old was flown to a Houston hospital for further treatment.
Dumas said some of those treated locally were released later that evening, while the 12-yearold birthday girl was released the following day. The 8-year-old flown to Houston was also released on Sunday.
According to Dumas, the children are now undergoing continued medical evaluations, including neurological assessments, because the effects of carbon monoxide exposure can persist long after the initial incident.
“It can be three days to almost a year that you can suffer effects from carbon monoxide and neurological brain injury,” Dumas said. “The girls’ mother has taken her kids to be evaluated. They are going to neurologists and are still suffering from exposure and having headaches, nausea and confusion.”
The hotel’s pool heater system has become the focus of the investigation. Questions include whether the heater or associated exhaust system malfunctioned, whether carbon monoxide accumulated in the enclosed pool area, and why carbon monoxide alarms in the pool and hot tub area did not activate.
Hotel manager Duane Ide said hotel officials and the Bellmead Fire Department are investigating the incident.
“The fire marshal came out and checked it all out and said everything appeared to be fine,” Ide said. “I feel so bad for the family. I know they are suffering. My heart goes out to them. Me and my family pray for them. They seem like good people.”
Ide also said a carbon monoxide alarm in the pool and hot tub area never alerted to a dangerous situation.
The hotel, owned by Waco Hotel Partners, LLC, does not allow parties in the pool area, which Ide described as a public space for all guests with no food or drink allowed.
“We have event space where they could have rented a room,” Ide said.
The family, however, maintains that they were simply using the pool as hotel guests when the heater was turned on.
As of late January 2026, no formal lawsuit has been filed, but Dumas said he is actively investigating the incident.“We are investigating it, and our concern at this point is making sure the girls are getting the medical treatment they need,” Dumas said.
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