CAYUGA -- The Cayuga County Sheriff's Office is conducting an investigation into the death of a 22-year-old man from Berkeley, California who was found dead in a car Wednesday morning near Lakeview Cemetery in Cayuga.

A passerby noticed there were danger signs posted in the windows of the car. Emergency medical personnel discovered the vehicle was occupied, with signs posted on the inside of the vehicle's windows warning of hazardous materials inside.

All hazardous materials, including the vehicle, were removed from the scene and secured by "Op-Tech", a company from Syracuse specializing in the handling and disposing of hazardous materials.

In the interest of public safety and in an attempt to prevent "copycat" incidents, the Cayuga County Sheriff's Office is not releasing the names of the chemicals used. All chemicals involved in this incident are readily available over the counter and this method of suicide is known to police.

The U.S. Fire Administration says this is a version of something that took many lives in Japan last year called "detergent suicide," named for one of the ingredients used overseas. Firefighters know of two other recent cases, one in California, the other in Georgia. In every case, the person in the car has written a note warning police and firefighters of the dangerous chemicals inside.

The Fire Administration sent out a recent warning telling all first responders to survey the scene and never rush in if they find a person unresponsive in a car.