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A Sacramento area radio station fired 10 employees today, including three morning disc jockeys, after a mother of three died following an on-air water-drinking contest last week at the station's studios.
The hosts of KDND-FM's ''Morning Rave'' — who go by the on-air names Trish, Maney and Lukas — were fired a day after the station announced it was suspending the show and investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of Jennifer Lea Strange.
Strange, 28, died after participating in a water-drinking contest on the program.
She was one of about 18 contestants who tried to win a Nintendo Wii gaming console early Friday by seeing how much water they could drink without going to the bathroom. The show's DJs called the contest ''Hold your Wee for a Wii.''
John Geary, vice president and general manager of KDND parent company, Entercom/Sacramento, made the announcement today in an e-mail to reporters.
''Effective immediately, the 'Morning Rave' program is canceled and ten employees are no longer with the station.''
A company spokesman, Charles Sipkins, confirmed the three DJs, as well as two other on-air personalities, ''Carter'' and ''Fester,'' were among those fired.
Five other employees who worked on the ''Morning Rave'' also were let go. All 10 were fired, the spokesman said, for violating terms of their employee agreements.
The ''Morning Rave'' had been on the air for about five years and was one of the capital's top-ranked morning drive programs.
During the contest, participants were given two minutes to drink an 8-ounce bottle of water and then given another bottle to drink after a 10-minute break.
Fellow contestant James Ybarra said he quit drinking after imbibing eight bottles, but Strange, who placed second, and others kept going even after they were handed even larger containers.
In all, according to witness reports, Strange may have drunk nearly two gallons. Afterward, she appeared ill when she went on the air, one contestant said.
Following the contest, Strange called in sick to work. About five hours later she was found dead at her home.
The Sacramento County coroner said preliminary autopsy findings indicated she died of water intoxication.
Drinking large quantities of water rapidly can throw off the body's balance of electrolytes, causing brain swelling and leading to seizures, coma, or even death.
In February 2005, a Chico State University student died after drinking too much water in a hazing incident at a fraternity. Matthew Carrington was forced to repeatedly drink from a 5-gallon jug and then do calisthenics.
In that case, one fraternity member pleaded guilty to felony involuntary manslaughter and two others pleaded guilty to being accessories to manslaughter, among other charges.
Sgt. Tim Curran, spokesman for the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department, which would have jurisdiction over the KDND incident, said officers are not investigating Strange's death.
''It was a contest and people are saying there was no coercion. On its face, it appears it was all done voluntarily, and no criminal activity was involved,'' Curran said.
In the studio, Ybarra said Strange showed fellow contestants photographs of her two sons and daughter, for whom she was hoping to win the Nintendo Wii. The game console retails for about $250.
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