SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Samples taken from three tourists from Tennessee and Florida who died at a resort in the Bahamas under mysterious circumstances have been sent to a lab in the U.S.
to expedite results and help authorities understand what happened, officials said Monday.RELATED: 3 Americans at Bahamas Sandals resort found dead in unknown 'health emergency'The police commissioner of the Bahamas, Paul Rolle, said officials also collected samples from the rooms where the tourists were staying and the surrounding property to determine whether any contaminants were present."We really want to know what caused this," he said.He identified the victims as a married couple from Tennessee, Michael Phillips, 68, and Robbie Phillips, 65, and a resident of Florida, Vincent Paul Chiarella, 64.
Rolle declined to provide their hometowns.Chiarella’s wife, Donnis, was flown to a hospital in Florida and remained in serious condition, Rolle said.Their bodies were found Friday morning at the Sandals Emerald Bay resort in Exuma, where the couples had been staying in two separate villas.The Phillipses apparently owned a company called Royal Travel, and Robbie Phillips, who called herself "The Sand Lady," specialized in arranging trips to Sandals resorts.
She posted photos of the resort's beach on her Facebook page Thursday, saying she was there with her husband.The couple had three children and six grandchildren, according to the company website.The samples taken from the victims were sent to a lab in Philadelphia, with results of the toxicology study expected in about a week, Rolle said.