Autopsy Results Released for Gatlinburg Hot Tub Deaths

According to autopsy reports, the cause of death for a man and woman who died in a hot tub at a Gatlinburg rental cabin is drowning.

The medical examiner has ruled 63-year-old Jon Levin of Oak Ridge, Tenn. and Myra Smith-Findell, 62, of Corbin, Ky., drowned and that alcohol consumption and health conditions were contributing factors to their death.

Levin and Smith-Findell were staying at a Gatlinburg rental cabin when another person in their group found the two unresponsive in the hot tub just before 8 a.m. on April 9, 2016. Gatlinburg police and emergency medical services personnel responded to the cabin in Gatlinburg Falls Resort and found Levin dead and Smith-Findell unresponsive. Efforts were made to resuscitate Smith-Findell and she was transported to LeConte Medical Center where she was pronounced dead upon arrival. The bodies of both victims were sent to Knox County Regional Forensic Center for autopsy.

The report for Levin found that he had an enlarged heart and atherosclerosis. Toxicology results show he had a blood alcohol concentration of .206. Smith-Findell suffered from heart disease and had a blood alcohol concentration of .212.

Levin was the director of the Undergraduate Physics Program at the University of Tennessee. He oversaw the department’s scholarship program and a scholarship fund has been established in his name.

Smith-Findell worked as a senior consultant at Hewlett-Packard.