Mysterious Hazmat Incident At North Shore Medical Center In Salem

SALEM, MA — The first responders who came to to the aid of a person who had been exposed to an unknown substance, ended up having to go through a decontamination process along with the patient at the North Shore Medical Center on Highland Avenue Thursday evening, according to multiple reports.

A dispatch first reported that exposure to Fentanyl triggered the alarm, just after 4 :30 p.m. But it turned out to be some sort of pesticide, according to the hospital, NBC News appears to have first reported.

Apparently a patient’s symptoms, which included itching and a rash, triggered the response and out of caution the medical center had decontamination crews assist putting the patient and first responders through the process when they, too, came up with the symptoms, the Salem News reported.

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From the Salem News: Marblehead Man Contaminated
And NBC: Crews respond to Hazmat Incident

Photo courtesy Salem Fire Department, public domain.