CHARLESTON, S.C. — An 83-year-old woman with advanced Alzheimer’s dementia was allegedly found lying in a fire ant bed outside a South Carolina memory care facility, covered in bites and stings after she reportedly wandered through an unsecured door.
The woman, Shelba Catterton, was a resident of Harmony at West Ashley, a senior living and memory care facility in Charleston. Her family has now filed a lawsuit alleging that a series of failures left Catterton alone and unable to protect herself from a swarm of fire ants.
According to the complaint, Catterton was nonverbal and suffering from advanced Alzheimer’s dementia, conditions that allegedly made her vulnerable to wandering and unable to understand the dangers around her.
On the night of July 23, an employee allegedly propped open a door leading to the facility’s secured courtyard.
The lawsuit claims Catterton then walked through the open door unnoticed and unsupervised.
Woman Allegedly Left Alone in the Dark
The lawsuit describes a frightening chain of events that allegedly followed. According to the complaint, Catterton was able to leave through the open door and was subsequently locked outside alone in the dark.
She was reportedly unable to call for help or defend herself.
“Shelba — nonverbal, 83 years old, and suffering from advanced Alzheimer’s dementia — walked out through the open door, unnoticed and unsupervised. She was then locked out, alone, in the dark,” the complaint states.
Hours later, Harmony staff allegedly discovered Catterton lying in a fire ant bed. An employee called 911 after finding her.
“A bunch of ants were on her,” the employee reportedly told the dispatcher.
The employee also described bumps covering Catterton’s body, including her face and back.
“They really did eat up on her,” the employee said, according to the legal complaint.
Lawsuit Claims Up to 1,000 Bites and Stings
The family’s lawsuit alleges that Catterton had been attacked repeatedly by fire ants before she was discovered.
“Fire ants swarmed Shelba’s body,” the complaint says.
The family claims she suffered upward of 1,000 bites and stings, with injuries allegedly affecting her face, eyes, scalp, back, chest, arms, hands, legs and feet.
Emergency department records cited in the complaint reportedly described Catterton as having been found outside laying in an ant pile for an unknown amount of time.
The lawsuit also alleges that she was unable to cry out and could not brush the ants away. Her daughter, Jan Buice, told a local news outlet that she was horrified by what happened.
“I was horrified,” Buice said. “I just can’t tell you how horrified I was. Nobody should ever go through something like that.”
Family Says Medical Complications Followed
After the incident, Catterton was allegedly hospitalized with hypothermia and pneumonia.
The lawsuit says she arrived at the hospital hypothermic and required more than two hours of active external rewarming using a Bair Hugger warming device before being admitted to the intensive care unit.
Medical records cited in the complaint allegedly listed “innumerable pustules due to known ant bites.” The family’s legal filing says doctors connected the ant bites to life-threatening complications.
Catterton remained seriously ill and died on Aug. 7, according to the lawsuit. Her daughter, Sherri Lero, described the family’s experience as “horrendous.”
“Horrendous is what it’s been,” Lero said. “To watch your mom go from a walking individual to being in a bed, grasping for air.”
Lawsuit Accuses Nursing Home of Negligence
Catterton’s family is suing Harmony over allegations including negligence, wrongful death and violations of state law governing Alzheimer’s care facilities.
The complaint argues that Harmony was aware Catterton had Alzheimer’s dementia and was at risk of wandering or leaving the facility.
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The family alleges those risks were specifically documented in her records and should have required appropriate safeguards.
The lawsuit states that a person with Catterton’s condition was at a known risk of wandering and leaving a facility without understanding where they were going or the danger involved.
The family’s attorney, Nate Hughey, said that Catterton’s case was the worst elder abuse case he had ever encountered. Police are reportedly investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Facility Responds as Investigation Continues
Harmony at West Ashley has not publicly addressed the specific allegations in the lawsuit because the matter is now in litigation.
A Harmony spokesperson said that the company’s thoughts and condolences were with Catterton’s family and loved ones.
The spokesperson also said Harmony is a family-owned and operated senior living company committed to providing residents with care, compassion and respect but declined to comment further on the details of the case because of the ongoing litigation.
The allegations in the lawsuit have not been proven in court.
The case remains under investigation as Catterton’s family seeks answers about how an elderly woman with advanced Alzheimer’s dementia was able to leave the facility and allegedly remain outside for hours before being found.
What do you think should happen when a vulnerable nursing home resident is able to leave a secured facility unnoticed? Share your thoughts in the comments.