An Arizona woman experienced a traumatic shock upon entering the assisted living facility where her elderly uncle resided, only to discover his lifeless body sitting in a chair, appearing “hollowed out.”

Angela Boorn later received confirmation from authorities, as reported by Phoenix CBS affiliate KPHO, that her 75-year-old uncle, Gerald McClellan, had been deceased for a period of three to four days at the West Valley assisted living facility. This facility, LifeStream at Sun City, is situated approximately 16 miles northwest of Phoenix.

Expressing her heartbreak, Boorn, who regarded her uncle almost as a second father, shared her devastation over the fact that McClellan had been left unattended for several days, leaving her to make the grim discovery.

Recalling the scene, Boorn described her uncle’s remains as “a skeleton in a chair,” noting the haunting sight of his eyes appearing hollow.

Boorn recounted her routine of greeting McClellan with, “Uncle, I’m here.” However, on Thursday, Oct. 16, her call went unanswered, leading to her grim discovery.

“I just remember running out of the room and running to the front desk and just asking her when was the last time you checked on him,” Boorn told the station. The executive director at LifeStream later informed Boorn that none of the staffers at the facility had been in the room to check on her uncle since at least the previous weekend.

Boorn told the station she moved her uncle to LifeStream in January following the death of his wife. She said that before her aunt died, Boorn promised she would take care of McClellan, emphasizing that she was paying the nearly $1,700 monthly rent because she believed there were mechanisms in place to prevent things like this from happening.

One of those mechanisms included a button in every room that residents were supposed push in the morning, signaling to the staff that they were alright.

“Every day by 10 a.m., a staffing member was supposed to reach out to him or come check on him,” Boorn said. “He didn’t push the button; they tried to call him, didn’t get a hold of him, and they still did not go check on him. It wasn’t one day, it wasn’t two days, it wasn’t three days, it was four.”

Boorn told the station she was speaking out so other people who had loved ones staying at the facility knew what may be going on.

“Nobody should have to see that. It didn’t even look like a person because he had been there for so long,” she said. “People who do have family in there, check on your family member because clearly they’re not doing it.”

It was not immediately clear if Boorn planned to take any legal action against LifeStream.

The facility issued a statement in response to the incident.

“LifeStream at Sun City is deeply saddened by the passing of one of our residents,” the statement said. “Our heartfelt condolences and prayers go out to their family and loved ones during this difficult time. We extend our sincere gratitude to emergency responders for their compassion, professionalism, and support.”