Suicide By Toxic Fumes Forces Pasadena City College Evacuation

PASADENA, CA — A man apparently committed suicide Wednesday by mixing chemicals that produced toxic fumes inside a vehicle on the roof level of a Pasadena City College parking structure, police said.

Officers and firefighters were sent just before 11 a.m. to the parking structure on the northeast corner of Del Mar Boulevard and Hill Avenue, where an unidentified man in his 20s appeared to have taken his own life, according to police and fire department officials.

A note on the vehicle warned people to stay away, Pasadena Police Lt. Mark Goodman said.

The parking garage was evacuated, but classes continued at the college, as a hazardous-materials team was summoned, and a sheriff's department robot device was brought in to approach the vehicle, according to Goodman, who said a number of precautions had to be taken before the area could be considered safe.

A section of Hill Avenue was closed to traffic as a precaution, Lisa Derderian of the Pasadena Fire Department said.

THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY. PLEASE REFRESH THE SCREEN FOR UPDATES.

City News Service and Patch staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.

Photo: Shutterstock