Saturday update: Teresa Gereaux, college spokeswoman, said at today's news conference that the focus of the carbon monoxide leak contiues to focus on the potential failure in the dormitory's gas hot water system. | Details

Judy Norris woke up about 6 a.m. Friday in a dorm room at Roanoke College's Yonce Hall.

Norris, 68, had arrived the day before to attend a three-day Lutheran Power in the Spirit conference on campus. But that morning, Norris couldn't walk. She barely managed to crawl into the bathroom.

When Norris got out of the bathroom, she tried to rouse her roommate, but got no response.

"That's when I figured something was wrong," Norris said.

On Friday, an apparent buildup of carbon monoxide in a campus dormitory -- a collection of stately row houses known as Sections -- sickened dozens of adults attending the Lutheran conference and teens participating in a six-week college prep program called Upward Bound. Officials say the leak of the odorless and colorless gas may have been caused by failure of the gas hot water system.

A 91-year-old retired pastor, Walter J. Vierling of Pearisburg who was attending the Lutheran event, died in the dormitory, college spokeswoman Teresa Gereaux said. Medical examiners have not yet determined the cause of his death. Vierling was staying on the first floor, not far from the building's boiler, Gereaux said.

Norris' roommate, Christine Puffenbarger, was rushed to Lewis-Gale Medical Center on Friday, where she was first in critical condition, then upgraded to stable condition.

Vierling and Puffenbarger were two of nearly 140 adults and teens staying in Sections, which consists of Yonce, Wells and Fox halls, some of which date back to 1910. The dorms were last renovated in 1986.

Sixty-two people were taken to Lewis-Gale Medical Center, including two emergency responders who later recovered completely. Of those, five people were still being evaluated Friday evening and some of those had other health problems, according the Dr. Robert Dowling, medical director of emergency services at Lewis-Gale.

Age and proximity to the gas appeared to be factors in how seriously people were affected. "All the kids that I saw had really low levels," of carbon monoxide exposure, Dowling said.

Another 49 people were treated at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital. All had been discharged by early Friday evening.

Victims called campus police about 6:45 a.m. from an emergency phone. The police then notified the Salem Fire Department.

The victims complained of headaches, nausea, shakiness and dizziness, Gereaux said. When emergency personnel arrived, three people had serious symptoms -- one had collapsed and another was in some kind of pain, officials said.

At a news conference Friday afternoon, Gereaux said a preliminary investigation is focusing on the potential failure in the dormitory's gas hot water system. She also said there were no carbon monoxide detectors in the dorm.

The president of Roanoke College issued a statement Friday in a posting on the college's Web site. No Roanoke College students were involved in the incident.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been affected by this," said Dr. Sabine O'Hara, president of the college. "We are doing everything possible to ensure the safety of all people on our campus and provide support for those who have been affected."

Theresa Jackson, director of Upward Bound at Roanoke College, said the program has 49 students who are in local high schools. The 37 girls were staying in Sections dorms where the carbon monoxide leak occurred. The boys were residing in a different dorm across the campus.

Upward Bound, founded in 1965, has been offered at the Roanoke College campus for 40 years. Rising sophomores, juniors and seniors take classes in calculus, algebra, chemistry, English literature and other subjects. The college also counsels them on college choices and decision-making strategies.

The Upward Bound students joined people on stretchers in the emergency room halls at Lewis-Gale.

Stekeira Hayes, 17, a rising senior at Northside High School in Roanoke County and one of the Upward Bound participants, said she was dizzy and nauseated early Friday morning in the dorm.

She and others from the Upward Bound program were taken to Lewis-Gale. Stekeira was checked a few times for carbon monoxide exposure, but she was later released.

Some of Stekeira's friends and her mother met her at the hospital.

Asked about letting her daughter attend another Upward Bound program at Roanoke College, Vivian Hayes said, "I would send her back if they made sure they had the correct equipment to detect things."

Donna Smith of Roanoke picked up her 15-year-old daughter, Mahogany Williamson, at Roanoke College on Friday morning. Mahogany, a rising sophomore at Northside, didn't have any symptoms, but her mother took her to Lewis-Gale later in the day just to get her checked.

Power in the Spirit attendees were also rushed to local hospitals.

About 240 people attended this year's event, sponsored for the past 20 years by the Virginia Lutheran Synod. It focuses on Bible study, worship, music and Christian fellowship.

Sue Dugas, of the synod's Salem office, said about half the attendees were staying at Roanoke College, a Lutheran school. The conference is typically attended by pastors, lay people and others interested in learning more about the Lutheran denomination.

She said this year's participants had come from Vinton, Salem, Roanoke as well as other places in Virginia. A handful had traveled from North Carolina and Pennsylvania. She declined to release any names, citing privacy concerns.