New Jersey grandmother using oxygen machine dies after power company cuts off her electricity

Linda Daniels, 68, died of heart failure at her home in New Jersey on 5 July

An elderly woman who relied on an electric-powered oxygen tank passed away after her utility company turned off her power because she hadn't paid her bills.

Linda Daniels, 68, died of heart failure at her home in Newark, New Jersey roughly six hours after Public Service Enterprise Group (PSE&G) cut off the electricity, her daughter Desiree Washington told the New York Post.

According to her grieving family, she battled for her life for six hours after her oxygen tank stopped working around 10am on Thursday. She died at 4.23pm.

Her devastated granddaughter, Mia, said Ms Daniels was left gasping for air in her final moments. "She suffered and she passed right in front of us," she told NJ.com.

In a statement, PSE&G said the power had been turned off because the account was “severely in arrears” and had made at least 15 attempts to alert Daniels and recover the funds since January.

Washington, 50, says a family member made an electronic payment of $500 (£377) towards the debt two days before her mother’s death, bringing the balance to $1,400 (£1057).

The company also claims that it had no prior knowledge of Daniels’ medical condition although Ms Washington says she flagged her mother’s condition to PSE&G back in 2016.

“We have reviewed our records dating back to 2016 and there is no indication by the customer of a medical condition in the home prior to disconnection,” the company said, adding: “When notified of a medical situation, PSE&G carefully follows all procedures and regulations to ensure the safety of the customer. We never would have disconnected service had we been informed of the circumstances.”

“When we were contacted after service had been disconnected and were notified that the customer had medical issues, we began the process to restore service,” said PSE&G.

The electricity supply in the home was turned back on at 9am the following day, 23 hours after it had been shut off. “PSE&G kept lying and saying they were coming shortly. And they never came,” Ms Washington said. “They told us to stop calling.”

“She is somebody’s mother…You took a life. Was it worth it?” Ms Washington said ."God is watching you and you’re not gonna’ get away with anything.”

According to AP, an investigation has been launched by the Newark Police Department.