Reports of people with breathing issues inside the Palm Springs Department of Motor Vehicles office Wednesday led to the city’s fire department responding to what it called a “mass casualty incident.” The term is used by first responders to indicate an incident involves large numbers of people, not necessarily multiple fatalities.
The cause remains investigation, and no one was taken to a hospital, according to Palm Springs Fire Department Capt. Nathan Gunkel. He said 15 to 20 patients complained of burning in their eyes and throat, but that their symptoms went away once they went outside.
The fire department issued an alert at 2:35 PM at the DMV building in the 1100 block of Farrell Drive. Fire and medical personnel tended to patients on the scene and left by 4 PM.
