PHILADELPHIA _ The U.S. State Department is monitoring the investigations into the sudden deaths of three Americans, including a Pennsylvania woman, at the same resort in the Dominican Republic.
Miranda Schaup-Werner, 41, a psychotherapist from Allentown, died May 25 "suddenly and inexplicably in her hotel room ... after arriving and having a drink from the in-room mini-bar," a family spokesperson, Jay McDonald, said in a statement to ABC News.
Schaup-Werner was with her husband, Daniel Werner, when she began experiencing physical distress and collapsed in a hotel at the Bahia Principe resort in La Romana, McDonald said.
He told Fox News that Schaub-Werner had been diagnosed with inflammation around her heart 15 years ago, sought treatment for it, and was otherwise healthy.
The resort told Fox News in a statement that the Pennsylvania woman was found unresponsive in her room and "the hotel doctor responded immediately and coordinated her transfer to Hospiten Santo Domingo. Unfortunately, Mrs. Schaup passed away in the room prior."
On May 30, a couple from Maryland _ Nathaniel Edward Holmes, 63, and Cynthia Ann Day, 49 _ were found dead in their room in another hotel at the resort, according to news reports. They had arrived on May 25, and posted a photo of themselves together on a boat on Facebook on May 28.
Dominican officials said all three died of respiratory failure and pulmonary edema, according to the news reports. Toxicology reports are pending on the Maryland couple, Dominican police said.
The State Department issued a statement saying: "We can confirm the recent deaths of three U.S. citizens in La Romana, the Dominican Republic _ Nathaniel Edward Holmes, Cynthia Ann Day, and Miranda Schaup-Werner. We offer our sincerest condolences to the families for their loss. The U.S. Embassy is actively monitoring the investigations by Dominican authorities into these tragic deaths. We stand ready to provide assistance as requested."
Last week, a Delaware woman went public with the story of how she was severely injured in an attack at another Dominican Republic resort in Punta Cana six months ago.
Tammy Lawrence-Daley told 6ABC she was beaten for two hours and dumped in a crawl space. She told the station her injuries included a broken orbital, a broken hand, and nerve damage. She said she has undergone half a dozen surgeries and procedures since the attack.
