US nursing home cleared in woman's fire ant death

A Florida nursing home has been cleared of any wrongdoing in treating an elderly woman who was stung 1,625 times by fire ants.

At an appeal of a state agency's sanctions against the nursing home, a judge found that the 87-year-old's death was 'unfortunate and unexplained'.

Mary Gay died in May last year, around a day-and-a-half after ants chewed through the walls of Sarasota's Quality Health Care Centre, swarmed her bed and stung her.

Florida Agency for Health Care Administration can appeal against the ruling by Administrative Law Judge Jeff Clark.

Mrs Gay's family have also filed a civil suit seeking more than $30,000 in damages, charging the nursing home with negligence and causing her death.

Lawyer Michael Sasso, who acted for the state, said: "We feel they didn't treat her, they just tried to make her comfortable."

Karen Goldsmith, the lawyer representing the nursing home, was unable to comment.