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FLAMING GORGE — A propane heater that was left running overnight in an ice fishing hut was the source of carbon monoxide that left a father and son dead.
Around 9 a.m. Monday, an ice fishing party in the Big Firehole area — about 10 miles south of Green River — attempted to awake Steven McConnell, 58, and his son, Matthew McConnell, 17, to break camp.
The two were unresponsive, and the group without cell service, so a member of the party went half a mile south to the Big Firehole boat ramp where they met a man. He drove to get cell service and notified authorities of the situation.
When authorities from Sweetwater County arrived, they declared the McConnells dead. They noticed a propane heater in the hut was still lit. They determined the cause of death was carbon monoxide poisoning from the heater. No foul play was suspected.
The father and son were from Stansbury Park and had been fishing in the Big Firehole area. The party had set up four huts on the ice and the McConnells had gone to bed around 1 a.m. in one of the huts.
Officials are using this time to remind campers using heaters to keep the area well ventilated.
“This was a terrible accident,” said Col. Rick Hawkins of the Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Office.
