Ivan Matkovic: Tech executive's 10-month-old son Sena overdoses on fentanyl found at playground in California
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA: Sena, a baby son of a California tech tycoon overdosed on fentanyl that he found while crawling around a playground in an upscale San Francisco suburb, according to his concerned father, Ivan Matkovic, and nanny, Wendy Marroqui.
The 10-month-old boy was playing with his twin brother at George Moscone Park in the Marina District on Tuesday, November 29 when his nanny Marroqui noticed him having trouble breathing and going blue. "I shook him, and I'm like, something's wrong. I saw his face and he was dizzy. I thought he's not breathing," Marroqui told WRAL. She said that the baby had been playing, as usual, crawling around the grass and putting leaves in his mouth, when he suddenly became ill, prompting her to call 911. The boy was saved by paramedics by receiving a dose of the anti-opioid drug Narcan after they had established that nothing was obstructing his airway, according to the boy's 35-year-old father. The baby started crying and breathing again in a matter of seconds.
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"It's not just dealers and people you don't know who are impacted by this, it's tipping over into the broader populace," Matkovic told the San Francisco Chronicle after the harrowing near-miss. "I just wanted to let people know that along with coyotes and RSV and COVID, this is another thing to add to your checklist of things that you're looking out for [as a parent] because we weren't."
Sena was sent home about midnight on Tuesday, November 29 after testing at the hospital later revealed he had fentanyl in his bloodstream. City parks officials said that there was no drug paraphernalia in the area, such as foil or needles, despite the fact that the potent synthetic opioid can be mistakenly ingested when it is in powder form or absorbed through skin contact.
Matkovic stated that the police informed him that his son was likely exposed to powder, which is difficult to detect. The relieved father praised his nanny and the paramedics for their prompt reactions. "Really if it wasn't for her and her fast reactions, we might not be with our son today," Matkovic said and informed that his infant boy, Sena, is now healthy.