Negligent homicide?

Doctor died in Trieste: Investigation initiated

Berndt Urlesberger was head of neonatology at the LKH University Hospital in Graz for twelve years and only retired last year.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Maximilian Kurz Goldenstein, Christian Jauschowetz)

The well-known Graz doctor Berndt Urlesberger died of carbon monoxide poisoning while on vacation in Trieste on New Year's Eve. But where did the poisonous gas escape from? The public prosecutor's office is now investigating this question.

Dramatic scenes unfolded on New Year's Eve in an apartment building in Trieste: carbon monoxide escaped for unknown reasons - with fatal consequences for the former head of the neonatology department in Graz, Berndt Urlesberger. His wife was also in a critical condition and was admitted to hospital along with other residents.

The background to the tragic incident is now to be clarified. The public prosecutor's office in Trieste has opened an investigation into involuntary manslaughter and ordered an autopsy on the 63-year-old. A technical examination by an expert is also to be carried out on site, according to the Italian newspaper "Il Piccolo".