Carbon Monoxide Kills 8 at New Year's Eve Party

Eight young men and women have died in a cottage in southwest Bosnia, apparently from carbon monoxide poisoning during a New Year's Eve celebration, police said Friday. A local police spokeswoman tells the AP that police responded to a call around 10am local time and went to a house in Tribistovo, where several people were found dead. The village is about 95 miles southwest of Sarajevo, the capital. Regional police Commissioner Milan Galic later told the N1 broadcaster that the victims were local residents, four men and four women, ages 18 to 20. "They most probably suffocated, but more information will be available after the investigation," said Galic.

In a Facebook post, the Posusje municipality where the village is located mourned "eight young lives lost" and urged local cafes and restaurants to close down to honor the victims. Top officials from Bosnia and Croatia offered condolences to their families. Bosnian and Croatian media said the eight were high school and university students who died from carbon monoxide leaking from a generator they used for heating as they celebrated New Year's Eve in a holiday cottage. Carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless, and tasteless gas that can cause sudden illness and death. (More Bosnia stories.)