Mom and Daughter Found Dead Inside SUV. Vehicle Had ‘Poor’ Exhaust That Leaked Carbon Monoxide While They Slept

Nicole Moore and Kyli Dodge, 16, were temporarily sleeping in the vehicle “due to a condition at their residence,” authorities said

NEED TO KNOW

• A mom and her 16-year-old daughter were found dead in their SUV in Byron Township, Mich., on March 24
• Officials later determined the deaths were accidental and caused by carbon monoxide asphyxiation
• “It’s just one of those things where it was a complete freak accident,” said Kent County Sergeant Scott Dietrich

A mom and her 16-year-old daughter were found dead inside their vehicle at a mobile home park in Michigan. Days later, officials confirmed the deaths were accidental and caused by carbon monoxide asphyxiation. 

“It’s just one of those things where it was a complete freak accident,” Kent County Sergeant Scott Dietrich told CBS affiliate WWMT of the deaths of 38-year-old Nicole Moore and her daughter Kyli Dodge in Byron Township on Tuesday, March 24. “The vehicle sitting there, running for hours, and just let that carbon monoxide seep into the vehicle.”

That Tuesday afternoon, around 2:30 p.m. local time, officials were dispatched to the Maplewood Mobile Home Park following reports that two people were unresponsive inside a vehicle, the Kent County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. When deputies arrived, they found the mother and daughter dead inside an SUV parked in a community lot that was giving off a “strong exhaust smell.” 

Officials believe that the pair were temporarily sleeping in the vehicle “due to a condition at their residence.” The vehicle had floorboards and an exhaust that were in “poor condition.”

A test conducted by authorities revealed that the SUV had carbon monoxide levels of 2,000 parts per million after it ran for a few minutes, the sheriff’s office said. The local fire department evacuates buildings when carbon monoxide levels reach 35 parts per million, authorities noted. 

In an update, the sheriff’s office announced that the deaths of the woman and child were accidental and the result of carbon monoxide asphyxiation. They were later identified as Moore and Dodge, WWMT, ABC affiliate WZZM and Fox affiliate WXMI reported. 

Family members told WWMT that Moore and Dodge had just returned from a trip to Tennessee early Tuesday morning. They were discussing a move when they fell asleep in the SUV. Officials believe that the pair was dead “for an extended period of time” before they were found, according to the sheriff’s office. 

A GoFundMe has been created to help cover funeral costs and support Moore’s surviving children. 

“This unexpected tragedy has left us heartbroken and facing overwhelming costs that we cannot manage alone,” wrote the organizer, who did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s requests for comment. “They meant everything to us, and their passing has created a void that cannot be filled.”

The creator added that the pair “will be forever 16 and forever 38 in our hearts.”

“I will live a better life for my mom, like she would have wanted me to,” Jayden Dodge, Moore’s son, told WWMT. “I am really going to miss them.”

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Officials urge anyone in the community who is going through hardship and needs assistance to call 211. Heart of West Michigan United Way is a nonprofit organization that helps residents in West Michigan connect with resources.