Eight young people dead in Bosnia poison gas tragedy

Teenagers and students gathered at the holiday home for a New Year’s Eve celebration

The tragedy happened in a holiday cottages some 150kms from Sarajevo, pictured. Bloomberg

Eight young people have died due from carbon monoxide poisoning from a generator at a holiday cottage in south-west Bosnia.

The group, four men and four women aged 18 to 20,  had gathered at the cottage for a New Year’s Eve celebration, according to local reports.

The tragedy in the village of Tribistovo, 150 kilometres south-west of Sarajevo, prompted the municipality to close cafes and restaurants to honour the victims, who were said to be locals.

Regional leader Zdenko Cosic said: “It’s a tragedy. Tragedy that will mark this year. Tragedy that will forever stay in the hearts of the families of those who died.

"Personally, I cannot imagine anything worse and more tragic than the loss of children in such a tragedy."

Police responded to the call at about 10am on Friday where they found the bodies.

“At the site, we found eight young people, all dead, four males and four females. They were all born in 2001, 2002 and 2003,” said Milan Galic, police Commissioner for West Herzegovina Canton.

"Most probably the cause of death is suffocation, but we will know more once the investigation is over," he added.
The poisonous gas leak was apparently caused by a power generator used for heating. Carbon monoxide, produced when ordinary fuels are burned, is colourless and odourless and can kill swiftly in high doses.