14 DAY TRIAL // 21-year-old reality star Shain Gandee of MTV’s “Buckwild” was found dead in his car in West Virginia, near Sissonville. Two other bodies were retrieved from the scene, with a new report suggesting carbon monoxide poisoning might have been the cause of death.
Gandee and his uncle (the identity of the third male has not been revealed to the press) had been missing for 31 hours at the time the discovery was made, as we also reported earlier today.
Also then, we informed you that police did not suspect foul play.
TMZ offers a possible explanation for that: as it turns out, the three probably died of carbon monoxide poisoning.
The truck they were in was knee-deep in mud and, once stuck, it became clear that they could not get out of the ditch without help.
The fact that there is no phone reception in the area prevented them from calling for assistance.
“According to the rep, Shain's 1984 Bronco is stuck knee-deep in mud in the middle of nowhere... and the only way to reach it is via an all-terrain vehicle. We're told there is no cell reception in the area, which is why Shain and the others couldn't be reached,” TMZ reports.
An ATV rider found the truck – and the bodies – and alerted the police.
“Officials have retrieved Shain's red Ford Bronco from the muddy pit where it was discovered and judging by pictures of the car taken at the scene, it appears the vehicle was submerged past the window,” the same media outlet writes in an update to the original post.
“The photos seem to support the theory that the passengers died from carbon monoxide poisoning because the deadly fumes from the car could not escape through the tailpipe, which was completely submerged in the mud,” TMZ adds.