Authorities continue investigation into Sunday morning death of WCU student

By Lynn Hotaling

Erin Revelle Hawk, 18, of Hendersonville, was pronounced dead on arrival at Harris Regional Hospital shortly after 7 a.m. Feb. 11, according to Gene McAbee, director of University Police.

The initial call, which indicated a student was having difficulty breathing, came in at 6:14 a.m. Sunday morning, he said. Hawk's boyfriend, a 25-year-old non-student, was attempting CPR when an officer arrived at Hawk's room in Harrill Hall, McAbee said.

McAbee declined to release the name of Hawk's boyfriend, who is also from Hendersonville. The boyfriend, who had apparently been living in Hawk's dorm room, discovered her breathing difficulty when he returned to the room about 6 a.m. after a 30-minute absence, McAbee said. The boyfriend sought help from occupants of another room in Hawk's suite, and those students called for help, McAbee said.

WCU emergency medical service personnel were unable to revive Hawk, McAbee said. WestCare EMS also responded.

Hawk's body was sent to Chapel Hill where an autopsy was performed Monday. Preliminary results show no sign of strangulation, no sign of wounds and no sign of trauma, McAbee said Tuesday afternoon.

"The cause of death is still unknown," he said.

The medical examiner asked for all medications found in Hawk's room in order to compare them with toxicology reports, McAbee said. Medications, which McAbee said included both prescription drugs and over-the-counter pain relievers, were scheduled to be delivered to Chapel Hill Wednesday.

Hawk suffered from asthma, which had been growing worse for several weeks, McAbee said, and was under the care of a physician in Hendersonville. She was using inhalers to control her asthma, the WCU police chief said. There is no evidence that alcohol was a factor in Hawk's death, McAbee said.

A second medical condition may have contributed to Hawk's death, McAbee said, but he declined to give specifics. The possibility of illegal drug use is under investigation, he said.

"The report from the medical examiner should give us a clearer idea of what we're dealing with," McAbee said.

State Bureau of Investigation officers are assisting with the WCU investigation, McAbee said, because of the uncertainty surrounding Hawk's death. "We treat everything as a crime until we know different," McAbee said. He indicated there is no evidence that any other students were there or involved in any way other than the two students who assisted Hawk's boyfriend in summoning help.

Hawk lived in a single room on the fifth floor of Harrill, WCU's coed freshman dorm.

WCU police, housing personnel and counselors met with students living on Harrill's fifth floor to discuss the incident and explain the investigation, McAbee said. The aim is "to calm students' fears and provide counseling for anyone who may feel they need it as a result of losing a friend. In a crisis like this, it's standard procedure to meet with students, encourage them to talk and encourage them to contact the housing staff if they feel a need for further counseling," McAbee said.

Hawk's death is the first of its kind during McAbee's years at WCU.

"No student has died in a residence hall in the 14 years I've been here," McAbee said.

Hawk, who transferred to WCU in January from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, planned to major in business administration and law, according to Bill Studenc, director of WCU's news bureau. An award-winning musician, Hawk was a member of the State Honors Orchestra each year while in high school. A 2000 graduate of East Henderson High, Hawk was an accomplished horsewoman.

Hawk is survived by her parents, Dr. Rodney Hawk and Linda Hawk, two brothers, a grandmother and a grandfather. The funeral was scheduled for 4 p.m. Wednesday at East Flat Rock United Methodist Church.

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