Teacher unknowingly poisons herself; reports say she was trying to kill rats at the school

[Dolores]

A teacher who sought to get rid of rats that she had found were damaging books in a public school library abruptly died from the toxic fumes of the poison she used, preliminary reports indicate.

The teacher, 47-year old Guillermina Lemos leaves six orphaned children. She is described as an exemplary teacher and mother. She died on Saturday, 18 March 2023 after inhaling the highly toxic poison she had placed in bread to attract the mice she wanted to eliminate in the Tabara Abajo school where she worked.

Lemos is remembered for her vocation for teaching that made her one of the most beloved teachers at the Liceo Secundario Marino Antonio Geraldo, where she had been working for more than 10 years.

Victor Araujo Cabral, director of the Tabara Abajo educational district confirmed the information to Diario Libre. He said that he had known the teacher for more than 25...

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[Kipling333]

That is extremely sad . She must have been in a very enclosed area and used a large amount of poison to produce sufficient fumes to kill a human . I never knew these rodenticides were generally available to the public. They are for outside use to attack rat and mice plagues . I wonder how she managed to get her hands on such stuff and if she was warned.

 

[JD Jones]

"If a little bit is good, a lot should be better." A crappy way to pass away.

 

[cavok]

Rat poison is widely available here in all supermarkets and colmados. I've never heard of one that gave off enough toxic fumes to kill a person though.

 

[El Hijo de Manolo]

Rat poison is widely available here in all supermarkets and colmados. I've never heard of one that gave off enough toxic fumes to kill a person though.

Tres pasitos. Highly toxic to humans

 

[cavok]

Tres pasitos. Highly toxic to humans

Yes, they all are - to ingest. I've heard of several cases of suicide from eating rat poison.

 

[RDKNIGHT]

RIP young lady a sad way to pass into the next life..

 

[Manuel01]

This is by far the weirdest story i have heart in a looooong time. Toxic Gases from Rat Poison ??? I know the blue granulate stuff, i know this poisones chewing blocks, i know glue trapes. What in Hell causes gases to kill a human ?????

 

[Kipling333]

She was killed by inhaling a product containing zinc phosphide..there are hundred of rat poisons but this one produces fumes especially when mixed with ,say, water. I have seen it used on farms but you have to wear a mask when applying it and protective clothing .Other rat poisons kill rats when they eat the stuff ,it acts like giant doses of blood thinners would. I do not know where the poor woman could have purchased the stuff , probably from a shop selling products such as Round up and herbicides.

 

[cavok]

What she had was an insecticide. I didn't see any articles recommending it being used to kill rats:

Profenophos 40% + Cypermethrin 4% EC – D.B. MultinationaL

 

[Auryn]

My question is why is the teacher the one handling it? Not someone else who might know more about safety & proper use.

Also how bad was the bloody infestation that she resorted to dealing with it herself and/or used enough of it to be deadly.

It all just speaks to the abysmal state of public schools here.

And she was a mother of 6. The whole story is so terribly heartbreaking.