Asphyxiation Blamed for 12 Tijuana Deaths

The deaths of 12 people during a religious ceremony may have been caused by asphyxiation due to carbon monoxide poisoning, the coroner’s office reported here today.

Dr. Gustavo Salazar, head pathologist in the Tijuana coroner’s office, said preliminary results from autopsies done on the dead indicate they died from carbon monoxide. There was a butane tank inside the small, two-room house.

Victor Vazquez, deputy district attorney in Tijuana, said the windows and doors in the small house, which had no electricity, were shut tight while a butane lamp burned in the living room.

Vazquez said the lamp apparently consumed all of the oxygen in the house and what was left was carbon monoxide.

“It was definitely an accident,” said Vazquez, who added that there was no leak in the butane system. The people in the room feel asleep with the loss of oxygen, he said.

He said six autopsies have been done so far and that preliminary results show they died of lung failure due to carbon monoxide poisoning.

In reaching their initial conclusion, Mexican authorities have now ruled out that the people died from drinking a fruit punch tainted with industrial solvent or alcohol.

Among the 12 dead were three children. Five others were injured, including three who are still in comas and listed in critical condition. The deaths are believed to have occurred early Thursday.

Another man, Moises Merida Gonzalez, 32, checked into the hospital late Thursday, and clinic officials believed he might also have participated in the ceremony. Merida drifted in and out of consciousness this morning.

Among those in a coma is the charismatic leader of the small religious group, Frederico Padres Mexia, 61.

While little is known about Mexia, those in the barrio who knew him said he had U.S. connections and spoke English. This helped fuel a feeling of resentment among some residents of the area who were blaming Americans for the deaths.

Neighbors said that Mexia characterized himself as a spiritual leader who could talk to the dead.