Unknown Substance Exposure in New Mexico Home Kills 3, Hospitalizes 19
Updated
Updated · KOB 4 · May 20
Unknown Substance Exposure in New Mexico Home Kills 3, Hospitalizes 19
17 articles · Updated · KOB 4 · May 20
Nineteen people were hospitalized after a substance exposure at a Mountainair home, including 18 first responders and one survivor who was being quarantined, evaluated and monitored at the University of New Mexico Hospital.
Three people died after paramedics and sheriff’s deputies answered an 8 a.m. call about a possible overdose, finding one person dead outside, one inside and two others needing resuscitation.
Two exposed first responders were in serious condition, and others reported nausea, vomiting and headaches after contact with the substance.
HazMat teams from Albuquerque were working to identify the material, which investigators believe spread through contact rather than through the air.
State police took over the case, secured the area around Hanlon Avenue and Pinon Street, and said there was no danger to the wider community.
In this small-town tragedy, what is the invisible killer that felled three and sickened the rescuers who tried to save them?
A deadly substance spreads by touch, not air. Is this a new fentanyl variant or a silent chemical threat hiding in plain sight?