Fez on High Alert After Three Teenage Girls Hospitalized in Critical Condition Over Acute Rat Poison Ingestion Incident

FEZ (FesNews Media) — Authorities in Morocco’s spiritual capital of Fez were placed on high alert on the evening of Sunday, November 8, 2026, following urgent reports of a suspected acute collective poisoning incident involving three teenage girls who allegedly ingested a highly toxic rodenticide commonly known as rat poison, a highly reliable source told FesNews Media’s correspondent in the city.

Immediately upon being alerted to the life-threatening incident, a specialized emergency unit from the Directorate General of Civil Protection (Protection Civile) was dispatched to the scene. First responders administered urgent life-support stabilization to the three minors before rushing them aboard emergency ambulances in extremely critical condition to the emergency trauma ward of a public hospital in Fez.

According to the latest field updates obtained by FesNews Media, the incident has triggered an immediate mobilization across all relevant security, local administrative, and medical services in Fez, with senior officials and judicial investigators deploying to both the scene of the poisoning and the receiving hospital to establish the exact circumstances surrounding the tragedy.

Specialized Civil Protection Response and Intensive Care Mobilization at Fez Public Hospital

Sources familiar with the emergency intervention indicated that the specialized Civil Protection crew operated under maximum urgency protocols given the rapid and lethal toxicity of commercial rodenticides, which frequently contain potent chemical compounds capable of causing acute multi-organ failure, severe internal hemorrhage, and central nervous system collapse within hours of ingestion.

Upon arrival at the public hospital’s emergency department, on-duty resuscitation teams, toxicologists, and intensive care specialists launched immediate gastric decontamination, antidote administration, and advanced respiratory support. All three adolescents remain under strict 24-hour intensive care monitoring as medical teams work around the clock to stabilize their vital signs and overcome the acute toxic phase.

Full Security Mobilization and Judicial Investigation Into Motives and Source of the Toxic Substance

On the security front, officers from the Fez Prefectural Police (DGSN), judicial police investigators, and local administrative authorities converged on the location where the three teenagers were found. Specialists from the Scientific and Technical Police conducted a thorough forensic sweep of the premises, collecting biological traces and chemical residues for urgent toxicological analysis to identify the exact active agent ingested.

Under the direct supervision of the competent Public Prosecutor’s Office in Fez, a comprehensive judicial inquiry has been opened to determine the underlying psychological, social, familial, or digital factors that may have led the three minors to ingest the poison simultaneously, as well as to trace the commercial source from which the minors acquired the hazardous rodenticide.

Public Health Warning Over Unregulated Rodenticides and Morocco’s National Poison Control Hotline

The distressing incident has reignited public health concerns in Fez regarding the informal sale of highly toxic agricultural pesticides and rodenticides in local markets without age verification or strict regulatory oversight, prompting calls from child-protection advocates for tighter enforcement against the unauthorized distribution of lethal domestic chemicals to minors.

Pending official medical bulletins and the conclusions of the ongoing judicial investigation, health authorities remind families that the Moroccan Anti-Poison and Pharmacovigilance Center (CAPM) operates a 24/7 toll-free national emergency hotline (0801 000 180) alongside the Civil Protection emergency number (15) to provide immediate toxicological guidance in suspected poisoning cases. FesNews Media continues to follow the situation closely and will provide verified updates as the investigation unfolds.