Exclusive | Banned rat poison sold on NYC streets as expert warns genuinely scary product can kill when inhaled

The city has confiscated 140 pounds of banned rat poison this month but street vendors keep selling the stuff – as one expert warned the black market could have deadly consequences.Local medical professionals are bracing to handle more patients exposed to the effects of the poisons with one popular but “genuinely scary” ingredient blamed for the tragic death of four kids in Texas, said Adam Blumenberg, associate professor of emergency medicine at Columbia University Medical Center.“A lot of what [vendors] sell is illegal, but not that dangerous as long as no one actually eats it,” Blumenberg told The Post.“I’ve noticed a sudden spike in rat poisons containing phosphides, which are illegal and genuinely scary.“Phosphides release a deadly gas which can harm or kill people who breathe it,” the doc added.

“I expect we will see serious illness and possibly fatalities in NYC related to these products.”While phosphide — sold under the label Push Out — hasn’t been spotted again by officials since the city’s crackdown, other illegal and dangerous rodenticides like Sniper DDVP and Tempo are readily available on folding tables along Washington Heights’ St.Nicholas Avenue shopping corridor.The toxins are often imported illegally into the US and can cause seizures, coma, cancer and death, according to the city Department of Health.Seventeen inspections led to four summonses issued to vendors for illegal poisons since the start of the month — but Post reporters found the poisons for sale along St.

Nicholas Avenue as recently as Sunday.“Yeah they’ve been giving us problems for selling, they say everything’s illegal,” one vendor said.“What do you mean why are we selling it? We need money, that’s why.”While the rest of the city saw roughly a 1% decrease in rat sightings between 2023 and 2024, rat sightings in Washington Heights and Inwood’s Manhattan Community Board 12 increased by more than 15% — all as Mayor Eric Adams fights ...