Suicide attempt by poison sickens rescuers, shuts down hospital

Ed. An initial report and an update.

From the Orlando Sentinel:

The emergency room of Northwest Medical Center was shut down and three firefighters were treated for contamination sickness Sunday after tending to a man who drank the pesticide malathion in an apparent attempt to kill himself.

Margate Fire Rescue division chief Dan Booker said paramedics were called to a Coconut Creek home in the 5900 block of 40th Lane just before 1:30 a.m. Sunday and found a man in his front lawn.

Paramedics were told the man tried to commit sucide by ingesting the toxic chemical commonly used as a bug killer.

As they treated the man on route to the hospital, he vomited, said Booker, which caused the paramedics “to become dizzy, nauseous and getting headaches.”

From CBS Miami:

An apparent suicide attempt using a toxic chemical closed the emergency room at Northwest Medical Center for hours Sunday morning, after the victim contaminated himself, paramedics, and eventually the emergency room with a pesticide.

Margate Fire Rescue paramedics were called to a Coconut Creek home about 1:30 Sunday morning, answering a call about a man who tried to kill himself by drinking the pesticide Malathion. They found the man in his front lawn.

While commonly used, Malathion is highly toxic and considered a hazardous material.

… the hospital held the victim in an outside area. The ER itself was closed. By 9 a.m., the hospital issued a statement saying the emergency room had been cleared by the BSO Hazmat team and the Florida Department of Health, and had been re-opened.