3 Dead in New Mexico and First Responders Decontaminated After Exposure to Unknown Substance

Three people are dead and more than a dozen first responders had to be quarantined and assessed Wednesday.
3 Dead in New Mexico and First Responders Decontaminated After Exposure to Unknown Substance
Workers remove a body after several people died and more than a dozen first responders were exposed to an unknown substance in Mountainair, N.M., on May 20, 2026. Savannah Peters/AP Photo
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MOUNTAINAIR, N.M.—Three people are dead and more than a dozen first responders had to be quarantined and assessed Wednesday for possible exposure to an unidentified substance after being called to a suspected drug overdose at a rural New Mexico home, authorities said.

Four people initially were found unresponsive inside the Mountainair home east of Albuquerque, New Mexico State Police said. Three died, while the forth was being treated at an Albuquerque hospital, police said. Their names weren’t released.