The article will be continually updated
A suspicious white powder triggered a large-scale operation at the accident clinic of the employers’ liability insurance association in Murnau on Thursday afternoon. As the police announced in the evening, it was sodium azide. If ingested, the substance could cause death “even in small quantities,” said the clinic’s medical director, Fabian Stuby.
Several people came into contact with the powder and had to be quarantined. A man died – whether the powder was the reason remains to be conclusively clarified.
According to initial information, the powder first appeared at a vocational school, the nursing school in Penzberg. The dpa news agency reported that a 47-year-old man entered the school with a bottle of sodium azide. A little later he collapsed and had to be resuscitated.
Man dies – school class complains about problems
The man was taken to the accident clinic in Murnau under resuscitation measures. He died there in the emergency room. Since the man was contaminated with the powder and the same powder was also found in Penzberg, there was a large-scale operation. Special forces from the fire department and police arrived. The Munich professional fire department was on site with a special mobile laboratory to examine the powder.
As dpa further reported, citing a police spokesman, parts of a class at the vocational school complained of headaches and respiratory problems. They were therefore given medical care. Two went to hospital with mild symptoms.
Accident clinic remains open – no danger to patients
All nurses and doctors who came into contact with the man were isolated. They did not show any noticeable symptoms, as clinic spokeswoman Carola Krumbacher told BR. Despite the deployment, the accident clinic was still able to accept emergencies. According to the spokeswoman, there was never any danger to the patients.
The police assume that the man, who was himself a student at the nursing school, “used the place to end his life,” said operations manager Andreas Nieß at a press conference in the evening.
With information from dpa