Two men were found dead on Palermo Circle Saturday night after TECO Gas determined there was a gas leak.
The Lee County Sheriff's Office released new photos today that show the exhaust hose was disconnected from the wall in the pump room inside the house.
A neighbor found Mike Dewitt, the homeowner, dead on the third floor in the shower. They found his friend, Jake Faler, on the first floor in bed.
Developers and pool contractors said this could have been prevented if the gas exhaust was outside.
"It is very important that this exhaust comes out into a ventilated area far away from any buildings or any structure, especially if there's people inside," said Pool Network pool contractor Fernando Carvahlo
Scott Allan, Allan Development President, said he has put gas heaters with exhausts inside, but they have to have an air exchange system. It exchanges bad air for good air. The detectors are like carbon monoxide detectors that are inside homes.
Allan always tries to recommend electrical pumps and heaters, instead of gas.
"Sometimes these older homes don't have the power sources in their breaker box, so maybe the alternative is gas," Allan said. "But for all new homes, I would certainly go with an electrical system for sure."
Joseph Orlandini with Orlandini Development worked on the home, and he confirmed the pool heater is inside. The original plans show the pool heater was supposed to be outside. Allan said those plans never got updated to show the gas pump inside which is where things may have gone wrong.
Allan said they see gas pumps outside all the time because people don't like the look of them outside or there's not enough space for them outside.
"Homeowners just don't like the location outside," Allan said. "You're dealing with very small properties on the beach with large houses that almost entirely fill up a lot of the area. So, whether a homeowner wants it for his garbage can pads or something else, the pool equipment is always in the way.
Lee County Property Appraiser shows the pool was installed in 2023. The Town of Fort Myers Beach's Website shows no permit for a pool.
Carvahlo said a permit is very important.
LCSO is still waiting for the autopsy results to see if the deaths were related to the gas leak.