Alcohol and energy drinks blamed for WSU student death

By Seattle Times

The family of a Washington State University student who died October 27 said Kenneth Hummel died from acute alcohol poisoning.

Hummel, 18, from Lynnwood, was found unconscious in a dormitory on the Pullman campus. Police say they received a call from students saying Hummel was unconscious and they were performing CPR. He died later in the day at Pullman Regional Hospital.

The Whitman County coroner's report revealed he had a blood alcohol level of 0.40 when he died.

Hummel's aunt, Le Ann Easton, told a Seattle news conference Wednesday that her nephew also consumed some high-caffeine energy drinks that the family believes contributed to his death.

When a person drinks too much, they normally fall asleep or throw up, Easton said.

"With these caffeinated drinks, the body doesn't shut down," she said. "You can drink alcohol past the point where the body can handle it."

Hummel was a big kid, over 6-feet tall, his aunt said.

"He was the kid who would be talking to everybody, with a big smile on his face," Easton said.

The family wants to educate young people about the dangers of mixing alcohol and energy drinks, she said.

Meanwhile, Whitman County Coroner Peter J. Martin said a person would have to drink about a fifth of hard liquor to have a blood alcohol level of 0.40. The legal limit in Washington state is 0.08 percent.

Washington State University officials are responding to the death by forming a task force to study ways to reduce alcohol use, spokesman Darin Watkins said.

"It's a national problem that's now come to light here in WSU," Watkins told The Spokesman-Review. "Somehow this year we're seeing more life-threatening alcohol conditions than ever before."

Watkins said four other WSU students have been hospitalized this year after drinking so much that they stopped breathing. They were revived, he said.

School president Elson Floyd issued a statement about Hummel's death earlier this week.

"The loss of a young person seems especially difficult because of what it represents, a loss of possibility, of potential for the future," Floyd said. "Our thoughts and prayers are with Kenny's family and friends at this painful time."