American Tourist Dies: Wife Severely Hurt after Electrocuting Herself in A Mexican Resort’s Hot Pool

The family of an American tourist who died earlier this week after being electrocuted in a hot tub at a seaside town in Mexico sued the resort for wrongful death and negligence, according to their attorneys. According to the complaint, the man’s wife attempted to save her drowning husband after the current electrocuted him. Still, she ended up electrocuted as well and needed significant medical attention.

American Tourist Dies:

The family of an American tourist who died earlier this week after being electrocuted in a hot tub at a seaside town in Mexico sued the resort for wrongful death and negligence, according to their attorneys. According to the complaint, the man’s wife attempted to save her drowning husband after the current electrocuted him. Still, she ended up electrocuted as well and needed significant medical attention.

Lizette Zambrano, 35, who was hurt, filed a complaint on Friday from her hometown of El Paso, Texas, demanding $1 million in damages from the American resort managers. She did this a few days after being ejected from the hot tub at Puerto Peñasco, a vacation town one hour south of the border.

A request for comment on the lawsuit, which holds the Arizona-based defendants, vacation rental provider Casago International and travel agency High Desert Travel, liable for the couple’s electrocution and the death of 43-year-old Jorge Guillen, was not answered.

The lawsuit claimed that resort administrators took too long to respond in addition to neglecting to prevent and alert visitors to the hot tub’s risks.

According to the complaint, the catastrophe started on Tuesday when Zambrano, her husband Guillen, and several other family members arrived for their holiday at the high-rise condo complex known as the Sonoran Sea Resort. Guillen and Zambrano went to the hot tub to see the sunset over the ocean.

They were unaware that the water in the hot tub was rippling with an electric charge. According to Tej Paranjpe, an attorney at PMR law in Houston, “it’s terrifying,” as reported by The Associated Press.

Guillen felt the electricity jolt him as soon as he dipped his foot into the hot tub. He fell into a direct electrical circuit and was submerged in water in no time.

According to the complaint, Zambrano dove in to save her husband, who was drowning, but she was also swept in after being startled by the current. Recorded on cell phones, the event depicts the oceanfront pool deck going into disarray as shouting patrons hurried to assist the pair, only to realize that the hot tub water may be dangerous. It looks like someone is attempting chest compressions on a person who is on the ground in the video.

Although a visitor succeeded in pulling Zambrano out of the water, the complaint claimed that attempts to recover Guillen using poles and other metal equipment just resulted in electric shocks being given to an increasing number of persons.

“There was not a single staff member that did anything while Jorge was getting continuously shocked again and again underwater,” Paranjpe stated.

According to Zambrano’s attorneys, it took ten minutes for resort staff to react to visitors’ calls for assistance. It was too late when the manager finally managed to get Guillen out of the hot tub’s bottom.

After being transported to Phoenix, Arizona, via helicopter, Zambrano was released from the hospital on Friday.

Sonora state prosecutors in Mexico said that detectives were investigating “the origin of the electrical failure” and will visit the scene in the next several days.

A Golden Heart:

Last Monday, Sonoran Resorts Inc.’s sales director, Jim Ringquist, said, “We are all terribly devastated by the tragedy that occurred at the Sonoran Sea Resort.”

Additionally, he added that Fernando Anaya, the CEO of the business, passed away unexpectedly on Wednesday from a heart attack, “adding another unfortunate tragedy to the already sad situation.”

As of June 19, a GoFundMe established for the couple has amassed almost $55,000.

The GoFundMe states that Jorge “had a heart of gold and was always there for family and friends.” “The love they shared was one for ages.”

Although hot tub electrocution from malfunctioning underwater lights and pumps is still uncommon, experts caution that it is essential to maintain equipment with care.

The U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission recorded 47 cases involving injuries or fatalities in hot tubs, pools, and spas nationwide between 2002 and 2018.

A worker in Phoenix died in June of last year from what seemed to be an electrocution while working on a hot tub inside a fitness club.