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A tragic discovery outside a Providence, Rhode Island hospital has revealed the deaths of an elderly woman and her adult son who had been living in their car during a severe winter storm. Irina Kozak, 75, and Stanislaw Kozak, 49, were found dead inside their white Kia Sorento on Wednesday (February 11) in a parking lot next to Miriam Hospital, according to Providence police.
Authorities believe the mother and son had been living in their vehicle for approximately one year before their deaths. A Providence police spokesperson confirmed their deaths were weather-related, with underlying health issues also contributing factors.
The tragedy began on the evening of January 28, when temperatures in Providence plummeted into the single digits following a massive snowstorm that had dumped 20 inches of snow on the city three days earlier. On that frigid evening, a Russian interpreter contacted Providence police on behalf of Irina Kozak, reporting that she was "disabled inside her white Kia Sorento" and "cannot get out." The interpreter also relayed that Kozak's son had "passed away" and "hasn't moved in two days."
Providence Police Col. Oscar Perez explained that the call had come through a chain of contacts, with Kozak calling a Russian-speaking friend who then sent her English-speaking boyfriend to a police department in another town. Officers there advised him to call Providence police, but dispatchers were never able to speak directly with Kozak herself.
Police faced significant obstacles in their search efforts. The interpreter could only provide vague location information, saying the car was "at a park near Miriam." Officers searched the area, including Lippitt Park near Miriam Hospital, but were unable to locate the vehicle. "We didn't have a plate for the car," Perez said. Officers also could not reconnect with the interpreter after the initial call.
About an hour after the emergency call came in, the call log shows officers had "checked parks in area — Miriam Hosp — unable to locate" the car. Police received no additional information until nearly two weeks later, when the Kozaks were found inside a parking lot next to Miriam Hospital on February 11.
Officers later contacted a relative in Germany using WhatsApp to notify the family.
Perez said the department is "reviewing the response to determine if any improvements can be made moving forward" in how they handle similar emergency calls in the future.
The deaths occurred during Winter Storm Fern, which claimed more than 30 lives across multiple states from Texas to Massachusetts. The storm brought ice, freezing rain, and heavy snow to much of the eastern United States in late January.