Investigation ongoing into Eyota medical call, at least one dead

Emily Cutts, Post-Bulletin, Rochester, Minn.
·2 min read

Jan. 18—EYOTA — The Olmsted County Sheriff's Office is investigating the death of a 38-year-old Eyota man and the hospitalization of two other men after the three were found unconscious in a garage early Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022.

Olmsted County Sheriff's Capt. James Schueller said Tuesday morning that 38-year-old Brandon Mueller was declared dead about 2:45 a.m. Saturday at a residence in the 500 block of Canyon Lane Northwest in Eyota. Two other Eyota men, a 43-year-old and a 38-year-old, were taken to Mayo Clinic Hospital-Saint Marys in critical condition.

Emergency responders were called to the home about 1:05 a.m. after a resident of the home found the three in the garage and unresponsive. Mueller and the two men had been hanging out in the garage since about 9 p.m. Friday. It was not uncommon for the three to spend time together drinking in the home's garage, according to Schueller.

The caller told law enforcement that they had checked in on the three men at least twice before finding them unconscious and noted that about 20 minutes before calling 911, the trio seemed to be acting strange. A gas furnace had been running in the garage and deputies believed at the time that the three men could have been suffering the effects of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Minnesota Energy was called to residence and found that the furnace had multiple internal leaks. Schueller said a medical examiner with the Southern Minnesota Regional Medical Examiner's Office ruled out carbon monoxide poisoning as a cause of Mueller's death.

Social media reports state that a second man has died, but Schueller was unable to confirm that information Tuesday morning.

As a precaution, emergency responders gave the three men Narcan, an opioid overdose reversal drug. There are no negative impacts if a person not overdosing on an opioid is given Narcan or its generic version Naloxone.

One of the three men did regain consciousness after receiving a dose of Narcan, but was incoherent, according to Schueller. While the man gave a "thumbs up" when asked if he had used any drugs, deputies found no evidence of drug use in the garage.

In addition to sheriff's deputies, Eyota, St. Charles and Mayo Clinic ambulances responded to the residence as well as the Eyota Fire Department. The incident remains under investigation.

A cause of death will be determined by the Southern Minnesota Regional Medical Examiner's Office.