Cause of death for two Detroit children who died in casino parking garage

DETROIT (FOX 2) - The two children who police said froze to death at Greektown Casino in their family vehicle died from carbon monoxide poisoning, according to the Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office.

What we know:

On Monday, Feb. 10, Tateona Williams and her family, who were experiencing homelessness, were inside their van at Detroit's Greektown Casino. Inside were her five children. 

Williams first discovered one of her kids was not breathing that morning.

The van had run out of gas and turned off sometime in the night, leading to lethal temperatures inside the vehicle and the mom's tragic discovery. As a family member transported the child to the hospital, they got a phone call that another kid was also not breathing.

Both the 2-year-old and 9-year-old were pronounced dead at the hospital. 

What they're saying:

Officials believed that two of them froze to death but medical examiners confirmed on Tuesday that the two children actually died from carbon monoxide toxicity.

Their deaths have been ruled as accidental. 

Attorney Todd Perkins, who’s also running for Detroit mayor, weighed in on the highly publicized tragedy.

"Everyone wants answers because, as a community, we have lost long lives, and we are all hurting because of that," said Perkins. 

Sources close to the investigation tell FOX 2 the 9-year-old boy was covered in lice and the toddler’s teeth were rotted. Both did not have proper clothing. 

Williams did try to reach out to the city homeless services for help over the years.

"Sounds to me, that she was trying to keep her family together, that's her perspective. Another person’s perspective could be she should have known better, she should've fought harder to get into a shelter, but do we want to do that in this situation?" Perkins said.

What we don't know:

It is unknown what led to the carbon monoxide exposure. An investigation is still ongoing.