First Responders Isolated After Responding to Overdose Call

Three people are dead and more than a dozen first responders are quarantined after a report Wednesday of a suspected drug overdose at a rural New Mexico home. State Police said they were dispatched to a home in Mountainair after reports that four people inside might have overdosed; three of them were found unresponsive and later confirmed dead. The condition of the fourth person has not been disclosed, per the Albuquerque Journal. At University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque, 18 first responders were being assessed for possible exposure to an unidentified substance. Two were listed in serious condition.

A hospital spokesperson said several of them were dealing with nausea, vomiting, and headaches. Authorities said those symptoms first surfaced during the response, per the AP. "At this time, investigators believe the substance may be transmitted through contact and do not believe it to be airborne," a New Mexico State Police officer said. The hospital said it assessed and decontaminated a total of 23 patients. Those who did not show symptoms were released. EMTs and nurses from the hospital who came into contact with people on the scene were among those who showed symptoms, an EMS chief said.