Three children who lost both parents to carbon monoxide poisoning are suing the friends who hosted them overnight and the manufacturer of a water heater they allege released the deadly gas.
John “Jay” Ruskey, 53, and his wife, Kristen, 49, were found unresponsive February 8 at a home in Cambria, California, hours after paramedics had already visited because Jay became seriously ill.
The Goleta couple were well-known agricultural pioneers behind Good Land Organics and FRINJ Coffee, helping establish California’s coffee-growing industry while cultivating unusual fruits.
Their children — Kasurina, who was 19 when they died, and then-16-year-old twins Aiden and Sean — filed the wrongful-death lawsuit October 26. It names homeowners Ben and Robin Korman and water heater manufacturer Navien Inc.
According to the complaint, the Ruskeys attended a birthday celebration at the Kormans’ home February 7 with roughly 50 to 60 guests before staying in a guest bedroom.
The lawsuit alleges that a gas-powered tankless water heater repeatedly released carbon monoxide through a failed venting system into a laundry room and the adjoining bedroom.
A combination smoke and carbon monoxide detector serving the sleeping area had been disconnected, the complaint alleges.
“No alarm ever sounded,” the lawsuit states.
The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office independently confirmed that investigators found a disconnected combination detector in the couple’s room. The coroner ruled both deaths accidental, attributing Jay’s death to carbon monoxide and Kristen’s to the combined toxic effects of carbon monoxide and ethanol.
The lawsuit also describes an earlier opportunity to recognize the danger.
At 4:34 a.m., Kristen called 911 after Jay began experiencing severe symptoms, including vomiting and possible seizure activity. According to the Santa Barbara Independent’s reporting on the coroner’s records, she told responders he had eaten chocolate containing psychedelic mushrooms and might be having a bad reaction.
Paramedics recommended hospital care, but Jay declined treatment. The couple subsequently returned to bed.
The children’s lawsuit alleges that no one recognized carbon monoxide exposure, tested the air, shut off the water heater or ventilated the rooms.
Later that morning, friends found Kristen unresponsive on the laundry room floor and Jay unresponsive in bed. Guests attempted CPR and called 911 again, but neither could be saved.
The complaint seeks to hold the homeowners responsible for allegedly unsafe conditions and Navien responsible for alleged product defects. Those claims have not been established in court. The Santa Barbara Independent reported that neither the homeowners nor Navien responded to its requests for comment before publication.
For the Ruskey children, the case centers on the loss of both parents during what was supposed to be a night celebrating with friends.
Their family has also urged others to install carbon monoxide detectors and check them regularly, hoping to prevent another household from suffering the same loss.
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