11 soldiers ingest substance, fall ill at Fort Bliss

Eleven soldiers were sickened — including two who were in critical condition — after ingesting an unauthorized substance during a field training exercise at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Army officials said Friday.

All 11 soldiers were being treated at William Beaumont Army Medical Center in the border city of El Paso, where they had been since Thursday afternoon, Fort Bliss said in a statement. Those sickened include one warrant officer, two noncommissioned officers and eight enlisted members, the statement said.

The soldiers “fell ill after consuming a substance acquired outside of authorized food supply distribution channels,” according to the statement.